Looking Back, Forging Ahead Q&A: Nik Darlington, Graft Wine

By Harpers Editorial team

Published: 11 December, 2023

Following another eventful year for the drinks trade, Nik Darlington, marketing director at specialist importer Graft Wine, reflects on the highs and lows of 2023, plus hopes and plans for the year ahead, in our annual Q&A series.

How has business been for you across 2023 when compared with 2022 (and pre-pandemic)?

Starkly unpredictable, with highs and lows but little sign of normal trading patterns. New business has been particularly strong across the UK and we continue to trade strongly ahead of pre-pandemic levels, but I think in keeping with a lot of suppliers, we would have liked to see greater progress compared to last year.

What, for you, were the specific highs of 2023?

We’re very pleased that more and more new customers are discovering Graft and our producers’ wines, and that these wines are able to be enjoyed in increasingly widespread corners of the country. We remain a very small business with a relatively small footprint. Our wines therefore offer customers a genuine point of difference and that is resonating with people.

We were also delighted to be voted IWC Australian Specialist Merchant of the Year as this is a drum we have been beating for many years. Australia is producing better and more interesting wines than ever and particularly at the quality end of the spectrum, they offer excellent value vis-à-vis comparable Old World wines. The three Deep Down Under tastings we’ve held – with another expanded event to come in April 2024 – attest to this.

And the lows?

The erratic nature of the market has at times made it difficult to plan for the short to medium-term.

More specifically, how has the cost-of-living crisis impacted and what have you done to help mitigate the effects for you and your customers?

There are signs of it, whether that’s our customers’ customers reducing the frequency of purchases or dining out, or trading down when they do. We continue to do the best we can to ensure we have an appropriate product mix for our customers, and keep our prices as competitive as possible. Over the past year, for example, we have increased prices well below the rate of inflation and therefore offered customers a real terms price cut.

How much of a concern are the duty hikes, will you have to alter the way you do business moving forward?

On one level, I’ve always said higher excise duty makes the sort of wines we work with even better value in contrast to the very cheapest wines, so in the ‘trading up’ stakes that is something of a silver lining. However, there is a limit to which these things can keep going up without quality wine becoming fundamentally uncompetitive. I haven’t discerned anything directly related to the increase in August, but I am concerned about how the more granular ABV-based system will affect the market and wine pricing in future. This is particularly the case for importers working with smaller producers who respect what nature throws at you each vintage, and who are disinclined to manipulate ABVs to fit square pegs in round holes.

As a business, what goals have you set for 2024 and how do you expect to achieve them?

The perception of Graft has perhaps always been one of seeming bigger than we are, and that is testament to our ambitious outlook and aspiring to the highest levels of customer service – of the sort customers might expect from a bigger supplier. We want to continue growing to match those perceptions. We know there is so much potential yet for Graft to work more with new and existing customers across the UK and have an ambitious growth plan that we believe can continue introducing us and our producers to more people in 2024 and beyond.

More generally, in terms of business, how do you predict the drinks landscape will look this time next year?

I have stopped making too many predictions, certainly within a 12-month horizon!

Quick fire questions:

Champagne or English sparkling?

English sparkling

Cocktail or straight spirit?

Can I say neither?

Rioja or Mendoza?

Rioja

Orange wine – yay or nay?

Yay

Michelin-starred or relaxed bistro?