Small Fortune Podcast

Carol invited her friend Tim Allen, the founder of accounting firm AWG (Allen Wine Group) to join her for a conversation about a number of topics in wine industry finance including: the sale of his firm to a national company earlier this year, new rules in accounting that may affect wineries, how he helps his clients with banking relationships, and more. Carol shares her observations about the current state of the wine M&A market.

https://awgwine.com/

Questions? Comments? smallfortunepodcast@gmail.com

Sponsor: Global Wine Partners https://www.globalwinebank.com/

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When Scott Becker acquired virtual brand Realm Cellars in 2012 the business was heading for bankruptcy, but the brand had a great reputation. In this interview Scott tells the story of getting into the business, which he partially financed by assuming accumulated debts, and how he then found more debts, less cash, and a daily working capital struggle. After the momentum shift for the brand from a 100-point Parker score, the business finally turned the corner. Today, Realm is an estate winery with properties in the important Napa growing areas of Stags Leap, Pritchard Hill, and Coombsville. In the final...

This episode is a re-release of Episode 4 of the Small Fortune podcast that was originally released in September 2023, before host Carol Collison cobbled together a “good enough” recording routine. Her audio is really bad, but Sam sounds great, and the impetus for the original interview, increases in the federal funds rate by the Federal Reserve and how that change ended a transaction that Carol had been working with Sam on as the representative of the Seller. Since growing inflation pressure may cause the Fed to increase rates again, we’re re-releasing it. You will wince when you hear Carol’s questi...

The first episode of a 2-part interview with Scott Becker tells the story of how he entered the wine business and the mentor relationships he cultivated that helped him advance his career. Jack Cakebread brought him into the Valley and vouched for him to Vic Motto, founding partner of GWP with current partner Mike Fisher. Vic and Mike hired him to work at Global Wine Partners, which is where podcast host Carol Collison and he met. He next moved to Harlan estate. Hear all the lessons he learned leading up to his acquisition of Realm Cellars, which is the...

Tracy Sweeney had a big job managing the DTC operations for six luxury Napa brands in the Treasury Wine portfolio when she decided to leave to join a partner in founding Tomorrow Cellars, a company that produces alcohol-removed wines. Learn about her keys to management success in large companies, why she decided to become an entrepreneur, and the wild process of building a wine brand while learning how to make and sell a product that is regulated not by the TTB but by the FDA, and all the complexities that come with that. Carol and Tracy discuss a myriad...

Host Carol Collison talks to Nexterra Wine’s Director of Global Wine Sourcing Duncan Marks, a passionate and effective business traveler, about how his private label wine company Nexterra serves its winery and retailer clientele through fulfilling specific wine product requests as well as discovering and delivering new ideas. Duncan describes how he travels the world to source wine, the key annual wine trade shows. The conversation also includes an in-depth discussion about how to build and maintain successful international wine business relationships. The keys to success are, in addition to actually visiting current and potential suppliers: respect, curiosity an...

As today’s guest Stuart Spencer - grape grower, winemaker, and Executive Director of the Lodi Winegrape Commission – puts it in today’s interview, the US is the only major wine producing country in the world that allows its national wine designation to include foreign-source wine. Carol and Stuart discuss the recent failure of a California law, AB 1585. With American grapes going unsold and growers in severe economic distress, California growers and many others in the industry joined together to eliminate this Federal labelling loophole. The industry is working on new ideas to accomplish this goal, and in her introd...

Barra of Mendocino was founded by Charlie Barra, who began planting grapes in Mendocino in 1955. Martha joined the enterprise through marriage in 1980. Hear about the beauty of off-the-beaten path Mendocino, the cool-climate California growing region most committed to organic growing. Martha discusses the decision to convert their vineyards to organic farming in 1988. Through the family’s Redwood Valley Cellars, Barra is also a leading producer of organic wine for their own brand as well as on a custom basis for other wineries. Both the vineyards and the winery are CCOF certified (California Certified Organic Farming.) Host Carol Collison and Ma...

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...

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 bi...

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...

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...

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://juliea...

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...

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 fro...

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...

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...

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 prov...

Learn about how Gary Mortensen, President of Stoller Wine Group thinks about business strategy. Gary shares lots of great ideas about how to think creatively about your wine business and how to innovate. Hear what a SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) is and how it can assist your strategic thinking. These concepts are as important to a small winery as a large one. As Gary says, “Big company, big problems. Small company, big problems.”

https://www.stollerfamilyestate.com

Questions? Comments? smallfortunepodcast@gmail.com

Sponsor: Global Wine Partners https://www.globalwinebank.com/

After finishing a long and successful career in the California wine industry, Fred Reno retired to Virginia, the original American winegrowing region. Vines were first planted there in 1619 under orders from the British crown. They were hoping to find an alternative to French wine in its then-colonies. The founding fathers were investors in the wine business too, in 1773. In this 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, Fred and host Carol Collison talk about the history of the Virginia wine business, including viticulture, growing regions and issues in sales and distribution. Fred shares details about his favorite Virginia grape...

Andy Hoxsey’s family came to the Napa Valley in the early 20th century and through successive generations have farmed and sold grapes, as well as taken significant entrepreneurial risks.  Andy tells the story of his (and the Pelissa family’s) acquisition of Napa Wine Company in 1993, with the expressed intention of creating the first high-touch custom crush business, certainly in the Napa Valley but quite possibly in the world.  Napa Wine Co was where such brands as Pahlmeyer, Colgin and the star consulting winemaker Helen Turley incubated their brands.  On the podcast, Andy shares some interesting stories from his lon...

While looking through LinkedIn comments on the platform, host Carol Collison came across a fascinating marketing campaign for a high-end wine product released on Black Friday: Tank Garage’s Black Market. She reached out to the winery’s General Manager to learn more. In this conversation you’ll hear what a wine company founded and managed by marketing professionals looks like. Tank Garage is a company that addresses the wine consumer who wants access to the company’s inventive, limited-run products. This strategy creates exclusivity and scarcity which keeps the winery’s customers interested and engaged.

https://www.tankga...

Third generation wine business owner Jason Haas joins host Carol Collison to talk about how his “Tablas Creek Blog,” which he’s maintained consistently for 20 years, has helped him promote his Paso Robles-based wine brand. The discussion identifies the reasons why the blog has helped his business, why he is able to stick with it, and touches on other newer social media efforts. In addition, the subject of how the company has embraced direct-to-consumer sales, and why they still maintain a strong wholesale presence. For example, he has found that wine writers across the country are more likely to write...

In this episode of the Small Fortune Podcast, host Carol Collison talks with fellow UCLA Bruin and IRS Records founder-turned-winemaker Jay Boberg. Jay talks about the difference between launching a band and launching a wine brand, why he and partner Jean Nicolas Meo chose Oregon’s Willamette Valley (hint: profitability is in that mix),  and various growth strategies such as developing a brand first; staging sales growth to reduce cash burn; and staging estate development so that it can be funded from cash flow.

https://www.nicolas-jay.com/

Questions? Comments? smallfortunepodcast@gmail.com

Spo...

Listen in on a live panel discussion from Wine Business Monthly’s 34th Annual Wine Industry Financial Symposium. Event Host Erin Kirschenmann, Managing Editor of Wine Business Monthly, invited a group of financial professionals in the wine industry to share their insights and observations about current financial markets: Carol Collison M&A Advisor and podcast host; Tony Correia, vineyard and winery appraiser and owner of The Correia Company; and Adam Beak, Managing Director Vertical Head Wine & Beverage Groups, BMO.  Hear about how current grape and wine demand is affecting vineyard values, how banks and other creditors are adjusting their len...

In this episode, host Carol Collison talks with Janie Heuck, who is Managing Director of her late brother Jimi Brooks’ eponymous wine company, based in the Oregon’s Willamette Valley. This wine company’s history tells the unique story of the collaborative nature of the wine industry. Janie stepped in when her brother died tragically in the midst of harvest in 2004. With the help of Jimi’s friends in the winemaking community Janie got through harvest and then carried forward her brother’s legacy, growing the business into the success it is today. Carol and Janie talk about her latest cre...

It can be done.  Learn from one of Napa Valley’s greats about how he started his winery – V. Sattui - in the ‘70’s with a shoestring budget and built a business so profitable he was able to construct a 150,000 square foot medieval Italian castle with the proceeds.  In this interview, Carol and Dario outline the keys to his success: focus on sales, control costs, and plan for catastrophes.  Small Fortune Podcast listeners really shouldn’t miss this one.

https://www.vsattui.com/

https://castellodiamorosa.com/

Questions? Comments? smallfortunepodcast@gmail.com

Sponsor: Glob...

In addition to being an experienced manager of hospitality teams, Alysha Lee is a great storyteller. She and host Carol Collison discuss important management issues illustrated though Alysha’s tales from the trenches of modern luxury hospitality management. At Montage Resorts, she learned about creating memorable experiences and customer relationship management before the advent of CRM systems. At the Hillstone Restaurant Group she learned about how to run a hospitality business and manage to a profit and loss statement. At Far Niente she learned to manage transitions from family ownership to corporate ownership, which she has implemented with her re...

Listen and learn from an expert. John Glazewski, Director of Distributor Partnerships at one of the largest wine companies in the world, shares his wisdom on how to succeed in distribution, which can be summarized as follows: Show Up. Hear his advice on strategies for choosing the right market and distributor; how to engage with your distributor to obtain maximum performance in their market; the importance of distributor depletion, inventory and accounts sold reporting; and leveraging wine club customer relationships to maximum effect in wholesale markets.

https://www.pernod-ricard.com/en

john.glazewski461@gmail.com<...

John Gillespie and host Carol Collison discuss his most recent market report, “Wine in Decline,” which queries non or low- consumers of alcoholic beverages about how their perceptions may be affecting wine sales. The survey results are fascinating, and the conversation centers on the evidence from this research that some consumers view wine as too expensive or not a good value. For example, the survey found that “Wine drinkers who are drinking wine less frequently cited the rising prices of wine significantly more often that beer or spirits drinkers.”

John Gillespie was the founding Director of the Wine Mar...

In this episode, host Carol Collison speaks with Ori Katz, Partner in the Finance and Bankruptcy Practice at the law firm Sheppard Mullin about when and how business owners should approach their creditors when their financial situation is deteriorating. Topics include: the importance of having a clear understanding of your financial situation; how lenders think about their risks and how that affects you; and when it’s time to speak with a professional advisor. The conversation also includes the differences between such legal options as Assignment for the Protection of Creditors, Receiverships, and Bankruptcy.

https://www.sheppardmullin.co...

BMO Managing Director Mario Zepponi, a leading Merger and Acquisitions advisor and podcast host Carol Collison, also an M&A Advisor, recap the deal market in the two years since Mario was last on the podcast (Ep: 7, October ’23.)  Topics of discussion include how the decline in consumer wine demand has affected transactions, changes in the buyer set, valuations, what types of transactions may be seen in the future and more.

Questions? Comments? smallfortunepodcast@gmail.com

Sponsor: Global Wine Partners https://www.globalwinebank.com/

Music: Nate Collison

Logo Photography: John Corcoran

In this episode, fellow Berkeley Haas School MBAs and podcasters (!) Carol Collison and Mike Chaput discuss Mike’s journey to establishing his successful, high-growth IT services company, Endsight. Mike outlines concepts in technology, including how agentic AI might be used by wineries to increase DTC sales and operational efficiency. The conversation also includes the experience and lessons Mike learned through an early bankruptcy that led to his current business success. Some key management ideas Mike outlines include how vision, values and motives work to create a company culture that leads to growth.

https://www.endsight.net/ 

h...

Randi Bural is a Senior VP at AgWest Farm Credit based in the Willamette Valley, Oregon. The Farm Credit system is an enterprise founded over 100 years ago by the Federal government to support American agriculture. Because of their mandate they are not going to exit the wine industry, unlike some commercial lenders during tough times. Carol and Randi discuss a variety of topics in current wine finance including how lenders manage lending relationships when a borrower faces financial difficulties, strategies that borrowers are taking to get through the current industry downturn, exiting the wine business and more.

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The Small Fortune Podcast is about entrepreneurship, the wine business, and the ecosystem of companies that support it. Today’s interview covers them all. Concepts about start-ups such as “minimally viable product.” How wineries should think about sales channels and distribution. And how LibDib works for wineries as an e-commerce distribution platform. This podcast is a banger if you’re into entrepreneurship, the wine business, or both.

https://libdib.com/

https://www.xchateau.com/always-have-distribution-w-cheryl-durzy-libdib/

Questions? Comments? smallfortunepodcast@gmail.com

Sponsor: Global Wine Partners https://www.globalwinebank.com/

Music: Nate Col...

Scott Bozzo is an expert Farm Manager who advises his clients on which vineyards to buy and then helps them run the operation. Listen and learn how to do due diligence regarding water resources and rights when considering a vineyard acquisition. An entrepreneur and principal owner of Macotera Ag Group, Scott shares what his considerations were in deciding to start his own firm – great ideas for those listeners thinking about making the leap into self-employment themselves.  He also provides meaningful advice on how buyers should think about a vineyard acquisition. 

https://www.macaggroup.com/

https://cala...

Today’s guest Pauline Lhote grew up on a farm in the Champagne region and at the ripe old age of 14 decided she wanted to make sparkling wine. Her ambition, hard work and singular focus propelled her to become the Head Winemaker at Domaine Chandon, a pioneering French-owned California sparkling wine house. Carol and Pauline have a wide-ranging discussion about sparkling wine production and its challenges, being women professionals, the differences between the California and French wine businesses, and much more. As usual, the interview ends with Pauline’s insights on professional success in the wine business.

http...

On our 50th episode (!!) host Carol Collison talks with Cyril Penn, Editor of “Wine Business Monthly” magazine. Listen and learn about: how Cyril got his start as a journalist; all the different ways this successful trade publishing enterprise serves the wine industry; and the company’s newest data products. And after 20 years of watching the wine industry, Cyril shares his best advice on how to be successful in the business.

https://www.winebusiness.com/

https://www.winebusiness.com/classifieds/winejobs/

https://comptracker.winebusiness.com/app/

Questions? Comments? smallfortunepodcast@gmail.com

Spon...

As Ken Freeman says, “the harder I work, the luckier I get.” Still, the Freemans have had a charmed path to building their successful estate winery. From finding a famous tenant yielding cash flow positive business in year one, to picking their favorite wine – Pinot Noir – as the focus of their winery three years before the movie Sideways made the varietal the hot property it still is today, the Freemans have capitalized on their good fortune to create a successful business, Freeman Vineyard and Winery.  Carol, Ken, and Akiko discuss many topics, including the secrets to a successful husband and wife...

Pete Przybylinski, Executive Vice President, and Chief Sales Officer of The Duckhorn Portfolio discusses the many lessons he learned about wine sales and sales management during his thirty years at the company. Among the many useful ideas for sales professionals, Pete discusses: