The SVB Direct to Consumer Survey Closes Tonight, Monday, March 24th.

 

The SVB DTC Survey Closes tonight. Twenty minutes of effort in exchange for great information and benchmarks that only go to respondents.

Change in the wine business has come quickly. There is so much to do that you might wish you had extra limbs to complete everything. But rather than sprouting new legs, working smarter might be the more realistic approach, which brings me to the point:

The grandaddy of all DTC surveys, the Annual SVB Direct to Consumer Survey will close on Monday, March 24th, and I need 20 minutes of your time this weekend to contribute your winery's data, and your opinions. 

Do you need a success guide?

The Annual SVB Direct to Consumer Survey continues to be open through March 24th, and I need your help with contributing your own data. Only participants will get a success guide... And now you're asking, 'What is a success guide?'

What most wineries want today are answers. What should wineries do to get through this period? 

In this year's survey, we are collecting the solutions wineries are using to counter the headwinds. When finished, we will collate those thoughts into a file, and give those anonymized solutions only to participants. That's a success guide. 

Think of the success guide as a checklist or a muse. If you are searching for answers, you might get help from hearing what others are trying. 

What information will respondents get back in the guide? A very short topical list will include strategies that might fall into categories like:

Enhancing Wine Quality and Experience
Operational changes
Cost management
Supplier contracts
Inventory management
Marketing and engagement
Expansion and Distribution
Customer retention
Access to Capital
Navigating challenges

Respondents also will receive the full set of slides from which you can benchmark your operations. Neither of these two files will be released to the public.

Here are the [survey questions], and here is the [link to the survey]

Wine: It's what the young consumer wants. They just don't know it.

 

The beginning of change is understanding.

Each January in California, we are all enlightened by the Unified Wine and Grape Symposium, the DTC Wine Symposium, the Sovos ShipCompliant DTC Wine Shipping Report, and the Silicon Valley Bank State of the US Wine Industry Report. I'd like to say I attend them all, but some overlap. I do make it a point to attend the SVB State of the Wine Industry Videocast though. To allow flexibility, SVB records the video presentation of the SVB Report for replay. 

SVB State of the Wine Industry - what comes next?

 Click on the above picture to use the QR Code, or try this link: State of the Industry 2025

How Long Will This Last?

Now it feels like it's 2025. The new year's cobwebs are clearing, and the events are starting, including the release of the Annual SVB State of the Industry Report, the DTC Wine Symposium, and next week, the Unified Wine Symposium will be in full force.

The main goal of presenting the SVB State of the Industry Report is to provide a forward view and be as transparent as possible. I understand that many in this industry don't like to hear 'doom and gloom.' Who does? But that is exactly the comment I received several times over in the 2019 report when I said:

US Government Recommending Lowered Alcohol Guidelines and Enhanced Cancer Warnings

 

The Political Tug-of-War

The title of this post reflects the actions the Surgeon General is promoting. It's part of a long-term, well-thought-out, and well-funded campaign against consuming alcohol - any amount of alcohol. The campaign runs circles around anyone wanting to point out the other positive health science behind moderate consumption. But this report shouldn't be a surprise to anyone. 

Final SVB Annual Survey Participation Update

 

Survey Results as of 10/17 at noon

The SVB Annual State of the Wine Industry Survey closes this coming Sunday evening, October 17th. 

The great news is there has been a strong response rate this year, and we will close with a statistically significant response size above 500 total responses. The AVAs in seven regions will receive their own comps to compare performance against the other regions. 

A special thanks to Paso Robles for their record participation this year. Napa will again cross the 100-participant mark, so once again, thank you, Napa!  

I'd still love additional responses from wineries in Oregon, Washington, Lodi/Clarksburg, New York, Santa Cruz/Monterey, and Texas. With another seven to ten responses, each of the last four named regions will have sufficient responses to have their own regional comps too.

Please promote this post on your favorite social media to get the word out for the last push!

Adding your data to this annual industry event will only take about 20 minutes. 

Here are the survey questions that you can use to prepare: Link. 

Here is the survey itself: Link.

The Annual SVB State of the Industry Survey is Closing

The wine industry is in uncharted territory, but analysts' opinions of its current state vary. If the analyst views were music, they would range from Bob Marley's, 'Every Little Thing's gonna be Alright,' to Led Zeppelin's, 'When the Levee Breaks, I'll Have no Place to Stay.' Who are you going to believe?