Kim Wilson: ‘Looking Back, Forging Ahead’

By Harpers Editorial team

Published: 22 August, 2025

Kim Wilson, MD of North South Wines, is next up to bat for our Summer Q&A series, charting the year so far for her company and how the trade could be better supported by the Government amid industry turbulence.

How has business been for you in the first half of 2025 and how do things compare to where you were last year?

It’s been tough, we have to work harder and smarter to get our slice of business, but we are doing ok and are up on last year. Sending emails is not enough anymore, you have to be creative, proactive and agile. We have picked up quite a bit of new business in the wholesale side of our business and have really focused on the marketing plans for La Gioiosa and Black Tower to drive further sales. You will have seen that Black Tower has had a ‘glow’ up and that activation is happening now. With La Gioiosa, we took over London and Manchester with out of home media activity last Christmas and it was very successful. This August we also have a sponsorship agreement with Big Feastival.

What have been the biggest challenges and headaches so far this year and how have you sought to mitigate those?

Easy - Duty and EPR. It’s no longer easy to just get an ex-cellar cost and quote a customer. What used to be a 30-second task is now three or four emails back to the supplier asking for ABV, bottle weight, and whether the ABV can be kept consistent. It’s just boring and it adds a huge amount of extra work for the team. As we make this change, things inevitably slip through the net, and then we have to spend even more time sorting them out. This time could be spent on what really matters – driving the business forward and growing our sales.

What are you most proud of achieving this year in terms of driving the business forward?

My team – it’s been a tough, busy year, but we have all worked together and embraced the change. This year, North South Wines took on a new Finance and Ops Director, and this role was a change in attitude for us, as we had great foundations and processes in place. This role was about how we can get better, drive efficiencies, and use the cash in the business to work harder. We are about to hit ‘go live’ on an upgraded system (11 years of working on the old one from zero to £33m, and it is somewhat creaking). The team has just knuckled down and worked on this alongside the day job. I hate the term ‘back office’, but the team really are helping us in the sales and marketing side of the business to get things done more quickly and efficiently.

We do customer, supplier and staff satisfaction surveys each year and I am very proud of all the comments we get and also the recommendations that we can take on board to just continually improve.

Looking ahead to the second half of the year, what is the biggest cause for concern? 

Current market conditions. The wine sector is in decline, and everyone is fighting extremely hard for their place in the market. We still have a lot of oversupply in countries like the USA and Australia, and whilst this is great for the consumer, I would say that this year has probably been one of the most competitive I have seen out in the marketplace. I would question where that leaves us next year, as you are always looking to better the year before.

Time is also a huge concern – the days whizz by, and sometimes it’s just about trying to keep up, but as they say, ‘you have to be in it to win it’.

What single thing could the Government do to best improve trading conditions and the success of the drinks sector?

Hold Duty for a start to just give our sector a break.

What trends are you seeing in the drinks world at the moment, and how do you expect that to change going into the autumn?

For us, it’s all been about Portugal – now our fourth-biggest country in terms of imports. The naturally lighter ABV, combined with its style and competitive pricing, is proving a winning formula.

Any other predictions for the second half of the year? 

Christmas will be great for the consumer if the trade continues to push as hard as it has been over the last 12 months.

There will be more exciting, new, and different wines on shelf as retailers expand their ‘found/unearthed’ ranges.

Quick fire questions…

France, Italy or Spain? 

Easy Italy – Stefano (TWP) and Flavio (La Gioiosa) would never forgive me – ha!

Georgia, Greece or UK? 

Greece – watch this space from North South Wine

‘Normal’ or ‘natural’ wine? 

Normal

Cocktails or straight sippin’ spirits? 

Cocktail