Small wine producers need 'helping hand'

Erica Crawford says wine's major players need to help the smaller producers. Photo / Martin Sykes

Wine industry heavyweights need to step up and help smaller players through the global downturn, says industry identity Erica Crawford.

In 1996, Crawford co-founded Auckland company Kim Crawford Wines, which was sold to Canadian firm Vincor International in 2003 and then to Constellation Brands International in 2006. It has grown from 4000 cases in its first year to more than 500,000 cases a year.

Crawford has been working on global sales and marketing for Constellation New Zealand but is leaving at the end of this month, although she will still do contract work for the company.

Total wine industry exports grew 19 per cent last year to $904 million, with a target of $1 billion of exports brought forward to this year.

Constellation had seen a definite drop in shelf sales, particularly since November, Crawford said. Wine for home consumption was doing well but licensed premises had been hit hard.

Wine companies needed to use shop-floor sales data rather than export numbers to see what was happening in markets. Bigger companies needed to show leadership by helping the wider industry interpret this expensive data.

"Just giving a little helping hand by painting the true picture of what's going on out there for people to organise themselves. I think it's absolutely important that we do because the little guys provide the interest and the little guys are out there and creating new, little, interest varietals."

Smaller companies also needed help in financial management.

"I know it's not the Government or anybody's responsibility but it's just massive what people are taking on.

If you're not well organised and you're not well financed, then I think the next two years is going to be difficult."

The 2008 grape harvest jumped 39 per cent to 285,000 tonnes, which she said was more than expected with some wine still held in tanks.

"I think that there've been a lot of good, honest people in this business ... and I think they're suffering because of the random, quick-buck, opportunistic growers. Do we look at more sort of an appellation structure that they have in France where everything's so controlled you can only plant so much, you can only put these grapes in, I don't know."

Crawford would like to see the wine industry develop a monster brand,better leverage its position with sauvignon blanc - which accounted for 59.5 per cent of last year's 285,000 tonnes of grapes - and develop other varieties.

"I really would like to see a New Zealand wine brand becoming an everyday brand," she said.

"Drinking trends come and drinking trends go, don't they. I think we need to be ready with something in behind."

A restraint of trade will stop Crawford from working after she leaves Constellation until the end of June.

"I certainly would like to see myself back in [the wine industry] perhaps on a smaller basis," she said. "I miss the whole spectrum of involvement. I miss the vineyards and I miss the winery."