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Coravin founder tells DWCC how he turned near disaster into a PR success

Published:  31 October, 2014

To create something genuinely different in any market you need to try and satisfy an "unmet need"  that "makes people's lives better" in that sector, according to Greg Lambrecht, founder and inventor of the Coravin wine preservation system.

Coravin's Greg LumbrechtCoravin's Greg LumbrechtLumbrecht will look at how innovation can change markets

To create something genuinely different in any market you need to try and satisfy an "unmet need"  that "makes people's lives better" in that sector, according to Greg Lambrecht, founder and inventor of the Coravin wine preservation system.

Speaking at today's Digital Wine Communications Conference in Montreux, Switzerland, Lambrecht said he had no experience of working in the wine industry before launching the Coravin system and had spent his career to date inventing medical and surgery equipment.

His interest in wine came purely from a desire as a consumer to be able to taste or drink any wine at any time, without having to "commit" to pulling the cork. Hence he was able to use his skills and knowledge creating precise instruments for needles in spinal surgery to create the Coravin system that works by inserting a needle inside a cork and extracting wine through a gas and pressure system.

He said it took him a full 15 years to be able to find the right technology to make the Coravin system work, but was clear from day one what he saw as an "unmet need" for consumers who simply wanted to be able to drink a glass of wine from any bottle they owned on any given day without necessarily having to "pop a cork".

He believes he had an advantage in coming from outside the wine industry in being able to spot this "unmet need" as he had the experience and knowledge from his medical inventions to see the possibilities in wine.

Lambrecht spoke about the rollercoaster year he has had since the Coravin system was first introduced. On the plus side he has been able to build up a customer base of some 50,000 in 23 different countries, and Coravin is being used in over 1,000 restaurants.

On the down side he was faced with the potential disaster when it was discovered that in very rare cases the Coravin system can result in a bottle breaking or exploding if that bottle has been previously damaged or cracked. The news spread around the world reaching some 80 million people via news stories and online reports.

But he was able to turn a potential crisis in to a PR and marketing scoop by not only coming up with a protective sleeve that he was able to send out to his customer base within six weeks, but by going on a worldwide press and trade tour to try and put the record straight.

"Bad news travels fast," he admitted. "Fifty thousand people own it and 80 million people around the world knew about it."

He added: "I toured 17 cities around the world to talk about Coravin and overcome any negative impressions there might be out there."

Lambrecht said he and Coravin had enjoyed an "extraordinary year". It had shown him how diverse and "infinite" the world of wine is and how different each market is.

It had succeeded, he argued, to turn people's homes in to their own wine bar, allowed restaurants to sell any wine they own by the glass, gave producers the chance to show visitors back vintages and retailers can let customers try before they buy.

One big lesson he did learn, however, from working on a consumer product rather than a medical piece of equipment is that doctors' read instructions, the public doesn't, no matter how hard you try.

Lambrecht was speaking during the opening session of what is the seventh DWCC event which will see a series of talks over the next couple of days looking at how the wine trade can find better ways to communicate and tell its story not only within the trade but to consumers.

It will also include a number of special tastings showcasing Swiss wine, including a grand tasting on Saturday conducted by Jancis Robinson MW.

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