WSTA Industry Summit speakers revealed

By James Lawrence

Published: 08 September, 2021

The Wine and Spirit Trade Association (WSTA) has unveiled an impressive line-up of speakers for its annual Industry Summit next week, due to take place virtually.

Alex Forrest Whiting will chair the event, while WSTA CEO Miles Beale will host an industry briefing on Wednesday 15 September.

This will be followed by a double headed spotlight briefing in the afternoon, starting with Oliver Oram, CEO of Chainvine. Oram will share his valuable experience in international markets and developing Blockchain technology.

Meanwhile, Dr Ignacio Sánchez Recarte, Secretary General of CEEV, will tackle the complexities and future of E-labelling.

A panel discussion will then take place, steered by Katherine Bedard, Director of International Public Policy at the California Wine Institute. She will be joined by Russell Davies, MD of Hillebrand, to discuss how to keep ahead of the curve on software, standards and global trade.

On Thursday 16, the founder of Be Inclusive Hospitality, Lorraine Copes, will join George Yip, Emeritus Prof. of Marketing and Strategy at Imperial College Business School, for a discussion around leadership and business agility.

To close, the WSTA will finish with a panel discussion on how businesses can drive initiatives around ESG and diversity and inclusion.

The 2021 edition will understandably focus on the issues of post-Brexit trading, in addition to the minefield that is the Covid-19 pandemic, technological innovation, sustainability and increasing diversity.

“We are very excited to kick it off with the WSTA’s 2021 Industry Summit, which is less than a week away and boasts a line up to cover a wide range of red hot current topics - meaning there is something in it for everyone,” said Beale.