Case Studies in the Wine Industry

Cristina Santini, Alessio Cavicchi

• Publisher: Woodhead Publishing
• Year: 2018
• Print ISBN: 9780081009444
• eBook ISBN: 9780081010464
• Topic: Technology & Engineering
• Subtopic: Food Science
• Index: Technology & Engineering

Case Studies in the Wine Industry aims to close the gap between academic researchers and industry professionals through real world scenarios and field-based research. The book explores how consumer and sensory science has been implemented in the wine industry to achieve certain goals, including the rejuvenation of product image, the shaping of new market places, the achievement of market differentiation and geographical diffusion, the achievement of customer loyalty, and the promotion of traditional features of the product.There is an emerging demand from wine industry professionals and undergraduate and postgraduate students who attend business and agricultural studies courses who want to gain practical information through real cases and field-based research.- Bridges the gap between scholars and practitioners in understanding consumers of wine- Allows scientists and professionals to make the most of R&D outcomes- Advances consumer science research to address business problems in the wine industry

1

Introduction

Cristina Santini*; Alessio Cavicchi^{†    ⁎} Dipartimento di Scienze Umane e Promozione della Qualità della Vita, Università San Raffaele, Rome, Italy
^† Department of Education, Cultural Heritage and Tourism, University of Macerata, Macerata, Italy

Wine is a multifaceted and complex product, yet the wine business itself is complex too.

Some years ago, Orth et al. (2007) had admirably depicted the characteristics of the wine business: the emerging of new competitive scenario, the growing importance of retailing, and the availability of huge volumes of quality wines have made the marketing and management of a wine business extremely challenging.

Running a wine business means dealing with the following issues, among others: How to differentiate a product? How to succeed in a foreign market? How to turn terroir into a strategic leverage? How to deal with consumers more and more conscious of intrinsic and extrinsic attributes? And many other questions and problems emerge.

The role of consumers’ preferences has progressively gained importance.

This scenario has created a breeding ground for international research: researchers have investigated the relevance of consumers from multiple perspectives. Terms such as consumer behavior, preferences, expectation, and buying behavior became part of the vocabulary of the wine business. The advances in research and the accessibility of research insights have fostered the interest toward consumers. New tools have been designed for understanding consumers, markets, and emerging needs. The interest toward consumer science grew, and nowadays, it can be reasonably considered as a multidisciplinary area of research of increasing importance that crosses both social and natural sciences for supporting strategic planning.

This book is divided into four different sections. The first part of the book introduces the characteristics of the business, and it provides a framework for understanding the state of the art in consumer science. As previously outlined, the ongoing competitive challenges are reshaping the wine business. In Chapter 2, Lecat et al. illustrate the dynamics that are affecting the system of production and consumption in the wine business; the authors underline the change of the competitive scenario according to geographic location and countries’ lack of international awareness. Lecat et al. provide a deep understanding of the world wine market, and they underline the risk that some Old World countries are running: isolationism can represent a threat due to the fall of local market capacity to absorb wine production. The relationship with the market, the predominant role of consumers, and the need for interpreting market trends and needs emerge.

Chapter 3 explores the issue of consumer behavior toward wine product, and Chapter 4 introduces the reader to the importance of consumer science as a business tool. Lai, in Chapter 3, provides a comprehensive overview of the motivations behind the differences in wine purchasing according to emerging findings from the academic literature. The ongoing globalization of the wine business and the changes in the competitive scenario, as Lai underlines, contribute to the emerging of new characteristics in wine consumers, and consequently, new market needs occur. The interest in consumer behavior is fully motivated, as well as the awareness for the employability of consumer science tools.

Chapter 4 offers an overview of academic contributions to the issue of consumer and sensory science as a strategic marketing tool. This chapter underlines the importance for producers to adopt a consumer-oriented approach, and it highlights how consumer and sensory science can be adopted to this aim. Therefore, the relevance and usefulness of a multidisciplinary perspective emerge, and Chapter 4 underlines the emerging insights from background research that provides inputs for combining different tools and research methodologies.

In the second part of the book, the attention focuses on the role that consumer science has in the development of new products. Chapter 5 provides three cases from Austria and gives the reader the opportunity to reflect on the innovation process; although in this process intuition plays a relevant role, the employment of some specific analytic tools can be extremely fruitful. In this chapter, Stöckl et al. also introduce the motivations that limit the implementation of consumer science in wineries and explain the resistance that producers generally show.

Chapter 6 provides another case in the Marches Region (Italy), and it describes how small and medium companies can employ consumer science and sensory analysis for improving their competitiveness. Chapter 6 illustrates, in a sense, a solution to the critical issues that are described in Chapter 5 and that can inhibit the adoption of consumer science in strategic marketing.

The third section of this volume explores the relationship with the territory, and more specifically, it explores how consumer science can support strategies where a territory plays a relevant role.

Chapter 7 offers an interesting case study of an Italy-based company that has successfully promoted protected designation of origin (PDO) wines through a sensory-science-based strategy. From Chapter 7, an innovative approach to terroir characteristics emerges.

Chapter 8 focuses on the importance of managing information—and more specifically the information displayed on a label—by considering emotional values. The combination of consumer science and neuromarketing tools can provide useful insights for effective management of geographic indications on the label.

Chapter 9 explores the rise of locally produced wine in British Columbia (in Okanagan Valley), and it investigates the elements that contribute to creating a tasting culture among local consumers.

Thus, when producers are facing difficulties—due to the growing competition and a shift in demand—they should consider new ways of promoting and differentiating their products.

Chapter 10 focuses on this issue and proposes a reflection upon the usefulness of consumer science for the promotion and marketing of resveratrol-enriched wines or wines particularly rich of resveratrol, due to the pedoclimatic characteristics of production.

The last section of the book explores how consumer science can provide useful information when planning a strategy.

In particular, Chapter 11 explores the role that an in-depth knowledge of consumers can have for a successful development of a new market: the case of Ukraine surprisingly appears as one of the most dynamic and exciting wine market.

Chapter 12 provides a description of how consumer science is managed for gaining information about consumers and markets. This chapter also explores the topic of sustainability and the importance given by wine consumers to environmental or sustainable issues.

Chapter 13 contains a profound reflection on the management of information gained through sensory profiling for the development of a successful marketing strategy of Canadian wines. The issue is particularly interesting, given the importance that Canadian wines are gaining in the international market scenario.

The last chapter, Chapter 14, explores the determinants that facilitate the usage of consumer science for strategic marketing: Bonfini et al. have studied the behavior of a group of firms based in Italy and their relationship with consumer science.

This book provides an overview of the potentialities, the limits, and the relevance of consumer science to implement effective strategic marketing initiatives in the wine sector. The aim of the book is not only to provide insights for professionals and academics but also to foster a discussion on the examined topic and to stimulate further research.

Reference

Orth U.R., Lockshin L., d’Hauteville F. The global wine business as a research field. Int. J. Wine Bus. Res. 2007;19(1):5–13.

Part One

Market Outlook, Consumer Behavior and the Relevance of Consumer Science

2

Wine sector: Definitions and nuances from global to country analysis—A comparison between Old World, New World, and emerging wine countries from 2005 to current

Lecat Benoît; Amspacher William; Higgins Lindsey; Lindsay Ferrara Adrienne; McGarry Wolf Marianne Wine and Viticulture Department, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, CA, United States

Abstract

Consisting of wine, beer, cider, ready-to-drink (high-strength premixed alcohol), and spirits, the w...

Table of contents

• Cover image
• Title page
• Table of Contents
• Copyright
• Contributors
• Foreword
• Series Preface
• 1: Introduction
• Part One: Market Outlook, Consumer Behavior and the Relevance of Consumer Science
• Part Two: New and Innovative Products: The Role of Consumer Science
• Part Three: Sustaining the Growth: Consumer Science and Market Growth
• Part Four: Interpreting Market Dynamics and Demand: Consumer Science as a Means to Achieve Strategic Information
• Index