Small Fortune Podcast

Ep 79: Stephen Brauer: Route to Market is More Than Distributor Alignment

The Small Fortune Podcast is centered on the stories of entrepreneurial and small business success in the wine industry, but the lessons from large company management can be useful too. In today’s podcast, host Carol Collison speaks with Stephen Brauer, currently an industry consultant who has senior management experience at some of the wine industry’s largest companies. The two discuss why this moment in the industry may be actually harder for larger companies to navigate, whether the wine business is suitable for public markets, and what a comprehensive “route to market” strategy looks like, including the concept Stephen calls “ways of working”, which defines how a company can optimize performance in wholesale markets.
https://vinexcel.com/
Questions? Comments? smallfortunepodcast@gmail.com
Sponsor: Global Wine Partners https://www.globalwinebank.com/
Editor: John Kiernan, The PodHouse Productions
www.thepodhouseproductions.com
Music: Nate Collison
Logo Photography: John Corcoran

Ep 78: Randall Grahm: New Ideas in Terroir at Popelouchum Estate

Randall Grahm is a highly creative person whose ideas have been expressed in a number of well-known and successful brands. At various times during his career his Big House, Cardinal Zin, and Bonny Doon wine labels were sold to others, and now he has turned his unique point of view to the creation of a “sense of place”, or terroir, at his estate in San Benito on the Central Coast of California.  Grape growers will be fascinated by his discussion of creating new varieties, how genetic diversity in the vineyard contributes to the expression of terroir, how the use of biochar “makes soil smart” and more. For winery owners and managers, Randall discusses his lessons learned over his career such as finding and building on underappreciated varietal niches, his unique use of humor in wine branding, and why the sale of Big House affected his winery operations. Carol and Randall also discuss today’s challenges in reaching younger consumers who are more visually oriented, and so less reachable through language, where Randall’s creativity as a writer really shines.
https://www.popelouchum.com/
https://www.abebooks.com/9780520259560/Been-Doon-Long-Randall-Grahm-0520259564/plp
Questions? Comments? smallfortunepodcast@gmail.com
Sponsor: Global Wine Partners https://www.globalwinebank.com/
Editor: John Kiernan, The PodHouse Productions
www.thepodhouseproductions.com
Music: Nate Collison
Logo Photography: John Corcoran

Ep 77: Glenn Proctor on the Future Grape Market and More

Glenn Proctor’s family has been growing grapes on a ~200-acres ranch in the Dry Creek Valley since 1904. Today he is not only a grape grower but a proprietor of a small family wine label (Puccioni Vineyards) and a Partner in the Ciatti Global Wine & Grape Brokers. While the subject of the industry’s current grape and wine supply/demand challenges does come up, most of the conversation is about subjects like running a multi-generational farming business, Zinfandel’s place in the wine business, and how growers should think about possible varietals of the future. Since both Glenn and Carol are brokers (albeit in different aspects of the industry) and so they also discuss what it takes to manage transactions and have longevity in their professions.
https://ciatti.com/
https://www.puccionivineyards.com/
Questions? Comments? smallfortunepodcast@gmail.com
Sponsor: Global Wine Partners https://www.globalwinebank.com/
Editor: John Kiernan, The PodHouse Productions
www.thepodhouseproductions.com
Music: Nate Collison
Logo Photography: John Corcoran

Ep 76: Building a Luxury Service Brand with Silverado Farming’s Pete Richmond

It seems unusual to describe a B2B business as a luxury offering but as Silverado Farming Company has evolved over its 25 years, that is the positioning that its founder Pete Richmond has sought. In host Carol’s first interview with a vineyard management company owner, you will hear how Richmond has developed his business to emphasize key attributes of luxury: exclusivity, quality, prestige, and sustainability. Pete is a student of business - and as you will hear - a manager who understands that there is more to business success than maximizing the money in an owner’s pocket. Hear how he created a business that grows brand capital, human capital, and yields other intangible rewards to its owners and employees such as giving back to the community, while also generating profitability.
http://www.silveradofarming.com/
Questions? Comments? smallfortunepodcast@gmail.com
Sponsor: Global Wine Partners https://www.globalwinebank.com/
Editor: John Kiernan, The PodHouse Productions
www.thepodhouseproductions.com
Music: Nate Collison
Logo Photography: John Corcoran

Ep 75: A Short Course in Publicity with O.G. Julie Ann Kodmur

Today’s wine business has been shaped by pioneers like Jule Ann Kodmur, who worked on an early Sotheby’s wine auction, and then worked for many important distributors and wine companies. She started her own consulting firm in 1997. Julie Ann and host Carol Collison talk through the differences between working for a company and being self-employed, but most importantly Julie Ann shares many, many great ideas about how to get publicity for your company. From stodgy old media to today’s influencer media environment, Julie Ann has experienced it all on behalf of her clients.
http://julieannkodmur.com/
Questions? Comments? smallfortunepodcast@gmail.com
Sponsor: Global Wine Partners https://www.globalwinebank.com/
Editor: John Kiernan, The PodHouse Productions
www.thepodhouseproductions.com
Music: Nate Collison
Logo Photography: John Corcoran

Ep 74: Selling Paso Robles with Jenny Heinzen

Jenny Heinzen is the Broker and Principal of Vineyard Professional Real Estate in Paso Robles, CA. She is the leading seller of winery and vineyard properties in this market. Why would Carol Collison, a winery M&A advisor, invite a fellow professional on her podcast? It’s because Jenny and Carol aren’t really direct competitors. In this conversation you’ll hear the difference between the two practices (Broker v. Advisor) as it relates to issues such as acquiring clients, finding buyers, and managing a transaction process. Jenny provides an update on the Paso Robles vineyard and winery real estate market beginning around the 32-minute mark for those who want to skip the broker talk.
https://vineyardprorealestate.com/
Questions? Comments? smallfortunepodcast@gmail.com
Sponsor: Global Wine Partners https://www.globalwinebank.com/
Editor: John Kiernan, The PodHouse Productions
www.thepodhouseproductions.com
Music: Nate Collison
Logo Photography: John Corcoran

Ep 73: Niagara: The Hottest Wine Region in the World with Paul Speck

With American wines off Canadian shelves and tourists staying home and visiting local attractions, now is a great time to be a wine producer in Canada.  Hear what’s happening in this interview with Paul Speck, President of Henry of Pelham Estate Winery, the third largest wine company in Canada founded in 1984 on land that had been in the family since the 18th century. The company is based in the Niagara Peninsula, the large Ontario growing region and farms 300 acres. In addition to wine production, they also run Family Wine Merchants, which imports and distributes beer, wine, and spirits from throughout the world. Hear Paul’s tips on how to succeed as a family wine company, the history of the Canadian wine industry and how it is similar to American wine history and succeeding through listening to your customers and giving them what they want among other great ideas. Paul also talks about their best-selling varietal product, Baco Noir. The conversation wraps up with key concepts for starting and succeeding in the Canadian wine business (and everywhere else too.)
https://henryofpelham.com/
https://fwmcanada.com/
Questions? Comments? smallfortunepodcast@gmail.com
Sponsor: Global Wine Partners https://www.globalwinebank.com/
Editor: John Kiernan, The PodHouse Productions
www.thepodhouseproductions.com
Music: Nate Collison
Logo Photography: John Corcoran

Ep 72: How to Wind Down a Wine Business the Right Way

Back in mid-2024, Episode #25, Carol interviewed Megan Bell, owner of Margins Winery in Santa Cruz, California. Megan had been profiled in the SF Chronicle about the increasing challenges in the wine business. Two years later she was profiled again for having ended her wine company, and host Carol Collison asked her back to talk through her process of deciding to wind down the business, and the sacrifices she made to make sure she paid all her growers and her bankers. Carol and Megan discuss various issues and tendencies that make it difficult for entrepreneurs to make decisions like this: the tendency to ignore information that contradicts your decision, the “sunk cost fallacy”, as well as the role of investments - such as a tasting room lease and tenant improvements - that have the effect of increasing a company’s break-even point and reducing financial flexibility.  Carol emphasizes that the discipline and integrity that Megan demonstrated in her wind down of Margins winery reflects the best of American business ethics, and calls to all business managers to remember to “do what you say you’re going to do.” An ethos that has made American entrepreneurship the envy of the world.
https://www.agleaders.org/programs/about/
https://www.sba.gov/local-assistance/resource-partners/small-business-development-centers-sbdc
Questions? Comments? smallfortunepodcast@gmail.com
Sponsor: Global Wine Partners https://www.globalwinebank.com/
Editor: John Kiernan, The PodHouse Productions
www.thepodhouseproductions.com
Music: Nate Collison
Logo Photography: John Corcoran

Ep 71: Far Niente Board Chair Carol Reber on How to Climb to the Top

Among many the keys to professional success in corporate environments that are discussed in this episode are: make what’s best for the business your “north star” (then your career will take care of itself); focus on the big picture (don’t get lost in the data); but also prioritize your efforts based on data.  Host Carol and her guest Carol also discuss challenges that women managers can face and ideas about how to overcome them. Learn what the role of a Board of Directors is (nose in, hands out) and the best ways that managers and board members can work together to advance the business they serve. Reber recommends that owners of businesses of any size find either informal or formal outside advisors to get advice and support when making important decisions. Please note: this is an edited version of a long conversation, some day in the future we may publish an “director’s cut” of the whole thing.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolreber/
https://farniente.com/
How to become a board member in six steps | McKinsey
Questions? Comments? smallfortunepodcast@gmail.com
Sponsor: Global Wine Partners https://www.globalwinebank.com/
Editor: John Kiernan, The PodHouse Productions
www.thepodhouseproductions.com
Music: Nate Collison
Logo Photography: John Corcoran

Ep 70: Sell More Now with Enolytics' Cathy Huyghe

Cathy Huyghe began her career as a writer for Forbes Magazine, writing on the wine business and related business issues. In 2009 she and her co-founder launched a data analytics firm, Enolytics, which takes winery client sales data from all channels and returns actionable information about where and how the winery can improve its sales results. Recently they have incorporated “AI” technology (specifically machine learning) to augment the service, and she and host Carol Collison discuss the pros and cons of using AI. They also discuss a new initiative recently launched, in a joint venture with direct-to-consumer specialists WISE, that provides customers a new way to execute effectively on their DTC data. Cathy shares a new key to success in our 70th interview: get out there and meet people.
Enolytics 
Enolytics 101 
LinkedIn 
LinkedIn 
Instagram
Questions? Comments? smallfortunepodcast@gmail.com
Sponsor: Global Wine Partners https://www.globalwinebank.com/
Editor: John Kiernan, The PodHouse Productions
www.thepodhouseproductions.com
Music: Nate Collison
Logo Photography: John Corcoran