Southern French Wine Portfolio Specialist

Planet Wine is seeking a knowledgeable and motivated Southern French Wine Portfolio Specialist to join our team. This position will be responsible for developing and expanding the company’s Southern French wine portfolio and promoting and selling these wines to customers throughout the United States.

The ideal candidate will possess extensive knowledge of wines produced in Southern France, including the region’s appellations, grape varieties, terroirs, production methods, producers, and wine styles, together with experience presenting and selling wines to professional customers.

Responsibilities

• Identify and evaluate wineries and producers in Southern France whose wines are suitable for importation and sale in the U.S. market.

• Evaluate prospective wines based on quality, appellation, grape varieties, production methods, pricing, marketability, producer capacity, and compatibility with Planet Wine’s existing portfolio.

• Assist in developing and maintaining relationships with Southern French wineries and producers.

• Develop sales of Southern French wines to large and small chain markets, airline, hotel, restaurant, retail, distributor, and other retail and wholesale customers throughout the United States.

• Identify prospective U.S. customers and develop new business opportunities for the Southern French wine portfolio.

• Analyze regional and customer-specific preferences and recommend wines appropriate for individual customers and markets.

• Maintain knowledge of completive products, market conditions, customer preferences and wine trends.

• Prepare tailored product recommendations and commercial offers for prospective and existing customers.

• Conduct wine tastings, product presentations, and other promotional activities for customers and industry professionals.

• Advise customers regarding wine characteristics, appellations, grape varieties, vintages, food pairings, pricing, positioning, and merchandising.

• Develop and maintain strong relationships with existing U.S. customers.

• Serve as a product resource regarding Southern French wines and communicate detailed information about individual wines and producers to customers.

• Coordinate with company management regarding inventory requirements, international shipping and distribution, climate-controlled storage and transportation, and applicable U.S. alcohol-label approval requirements.

• Contribute to pricing, inventory, distribution, marketing, and promotional strategies for the Southern French wine portfolio based on product costs, producer capacity, customer demand, and market conditions.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Commerce, Marketing or a related field.
• Strong professional knowledge of wines produced in Southern France, including Southern French wine regions, appellations, grape varieties, production methods, and wine styles.
• Formal wine education, certification, or diploma preferred
• Professional experience in the wine industry, preferably involving French wines and relationships with wineries, producers, importers, distributors, retailers, restaurants, or other trade customers.
• Ability to evaluate wines for quality, market positioning, and suitability for the U.S. market.
• Experience conducting wine tastings, presentations, and customer-facing product discussions.
• Strong sales, business-development, and relationship-building kills.
• Comprehension of European metric systems and wine making process.
• Excellent communication and organizational skills.
• Bilingual: Fluency in English/French strongly preferred
• Ability and willingness to travel as necessary to develop customer and producer relationships.