Having moved on from the pandemic but now with economic upheaval to contend with, the UK’s independent merchant sector is nonetheless in vibrant health, if this year’s crop of worthy winners are anything to go by. Innovation, backed by enthusiasm, knowledge and great communication, with ever greater emphasis on sustainability, were much in evidence across the readership-nominated long list this year.
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The Gérard Basset Foundation, in collaboration with Wine Owners, Lay & Wheeler and IG Wines, has unveiled a new Golden Vines Scholarship for members of the BAME/BIPOC community who wish to break into the wine trade.
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Once again the results of our popular 50 Best Indies list are ready to be announced, with tranches of 10 being revealed each day next week (9-13 January) at 11am.
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The year 2022 certainly had its challenges, with businesses struggling to make ends meet amid a soaring cost-of-living – and trading – crisis. However, one business is celebrating a bumper festive period, with last month offering up the best December in the company’s 30-year history.
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Following another turbulent year for the drinks trade, Phil Innes, founder and MD of Loki Wines, reflects on the highs and lows of 2022, plus the hopes and plans for the business in the year ahead.
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Christine Austin gives us the Yorkshire view, looking at how businesses have fared during Covid and beyond.
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With the cost-of-living crisis and import challenges ratcheting up, Andrew Catchpole catches up with our 50 Best Indies list topper Hal Wilson to discuss the path ahead.
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Fine wine and spirits merchant Berry Bros. & Rudd has uncorked its financial results for FY22, reporting 3.7% sales growth and a 107% rise in EBITDA – growth the business attributes to an ever-growing consumer appetite for fine wine collecting.
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Harpers popular 50 Best Indies listing is delighted to confirm that Walker & Wodehouse will be joining Cambridge Distillery as a sponsor for its forthcoming 2023 edition.
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As part of a Drinks Trust initiative, Louis Jadot will sponsor 20 places for independent merchants on WSET Level 1 courses, it has been revealed.
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Despite the cost-of-living crisis affecting consumer up and down the country, at least one independent has reported booming sales of its fine wines.
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London’s Theatre of Wine has turned 20, marking two decades since founder Daniel Illsley founded the merchant in Greenwich following the new wave of wine interest created by Oddbins and Majestic.
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Just over 40 miles from London, Farnham’s new watering hole, The Wine Yard, has become part of the regeneration that is taking place in the UK’s satellite towns. During Covid, many places felt the wrath of the virus and its various mitigation measures, with lockdowns leaving shop and restaurant fronts empty along what were once the more bustling parts of the nation’s high streets.
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Despite inflation galloping away and the cost-of-living crisis biting – not to mention shipping issues and related costs – recent pandemic-boosted trends suggest that consumers have become more adventurous and premium in their wine-buying habits.
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Against many odds, a first shipment of 8,232 bottles has left Ukraine as part of a new initiative by Propeller designed to support its producers by bringing its wines to the UK.
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To begin the process of shaping our annual Harpers 50 Best Indies Awards 2022, we are once again inviting the UK trade to nominate the UK Independent retailers that you believe are at the top of their game.
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Jason Millar looks at how the long tail of Brexit and Covid have impacted merchants looking to buy direct.
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Merchants across the UK continue to sign up to the Loire Valley Wines competition, organised in collaboration with Harpers and the region’s promotional body.
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DEFRA has announced today that they will not include glass bottles in the Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) for England and Northern Ireland.
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Loire Valley Wines is again running its popular independent wine merchant promotion this Spring/Summer.
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