Global Wine War Analysis

The winery industry can be categorized into red and white wine segments. The red wine segment, measured by tonnage of varietals crushed, has grown at a compounded annual rate of 4.7% for 10 years from 1989 to 1998, and a year over year growth rate of 8.2% from 1998 to 1999. Judging by the strong growth rate experienced in the red wine segment, it is reasonable to conclude that the red wine segment is in the growth phase of the life cycle model. In addition, production of red wine varietals which are relatively unknown such as syrah and sangiovese nearly doubled in a year from 1998 to 1999. The white wine segment, however, is at the mature phase of its life cycle as the segment shrunk slightly by 0.42% from 1998 to 1999. Overall, the industry is still at the growth stage lead by growth in the red wine segment.

The structure of the wine industry is quite different around the world. The barrier to entry is relatively higher in the New World than in the Old World. Referring to the market data on the level of concentration in 1998, people can see a few players dominate the markets in Australia and the U.S. while the level of concentration is quite low in Europe. Therefore, the rivalry in Old World is intense there.

In the 1960s, 1970s or even 1980s, if you ask someone, which countries produce the best wine in the world? They would have said France, Italy or Spain. However, if you ask someone the same question nowadays, the answer would be different. The new wine industry players such as Australia, the United States and Chile are changing the global industry structure, leading the global industry trend, and challenging the traditional wine makers by introducing innovations at every stage of the value chain.

The dynamics of the global wine industry are better understood through a brief history of wine as well as an overview of the wine making process. Some countries have longer historical and cultural ties with wine then others and that can affect the quality and perception of the product in the eyes of the consumer. Also, the conditions in which the wine grapes are raised and the processes used to make the wine can create a superior wine and therefore a competitive advantage.

Wine production involves two parts of economic activity – viticulture and wine making in the winery. In the global context, wine production is dynamic due to the influence of globalization, technological advancements and extensive research. These have essentially influenced the nature, spatial patterns and the ecological dimensions of the wine industry.

The most important necessary inputs for the production of wine are grapes, bottles and labor. Concerning the grapes, there is an outstanding difference between the traditional wine producing countries for example in Europe (the south of France, Spain, Italy and Southeastern Europe) and big wine factories that operate as oligopolies like in the US and Australia. Due to the bond to traditions and the higher demand for quality in Europe most of the wineries here still stick to the original way of producing wine, including the growth of the grapes on the land around the winery, a so called vertical integration (which is often considered by producers where the supplier's price is too high or the offer is insufficient, in our case this trend results rather in traditional and cultural values than in financial ones). This eliminates the percentage of dependence on agricultural suppliers significantly, whereas concerning a big wine company the negotiation power of the supplier is quite high. These wine companies tend to have a low sensitivity towards the price they are charged, as grapes are a crucial component of wine production. However, in both cases the price of the grapes is always

The case is introduced in late 1998 with Ron McManisat a crossroads of sorts regarding his family owned business. Currently, McManisenjoys moderate success as a mid-sized, Central Valley grower of grapes who sells his product to valley based wineries. His particular plot of land affords the added benefit of being able to produce high quality grapes in an area that is largely thought to produce grapes found in cheaper wines. In an effort to rid himself of this stigma and strategically position his company for growth, McManishired consultants to present options for expanding his current operations. The case closes with a presentation of various options with

The scope of the innovation expertise that New World wine producers have is value-chain wide in scope, and in-depth enough to completely re-order manufacturing, fermentation, distribution channel, pricing, marketing and customer service (Cholette, 2009). New World wine producers

Vincor International goal is to become one of the top five wine companies in the world in terms of earnings. In order to attain this goal they have implemented a corporate strategy that focuses on using their existing powerful position in market to help them developing sales, marketing, distribution capabilities on an international scale. The strategy also includes acquiring new wineries and wine brands in new emerging region in the wine market also called “New World regions”(Vincor, 2005) throughout the world.

The Robert Mondavi Winery became one of America’s most innovative, high-quality winemakers in the late 1960s and early 1970s. There are over 1 million wine producers worldwide and no winery accounted for more than 1% of global retail sales. Because of this and the fact that there are many substitutes, there is an issue to try to gain economies of scale and become a leader in the wine market. Wine tends to stay it its local region, which makes it harder to compete with its substitutes. In the strategic analysis portion of this case analysis, we discuss Porter’s Five Forces and how they affect the Robert Mondavi Winery. We conclude that in order for the winery to stay

This industry has seen very limited growth since 1986. Based on Exhibit 4 (C-271, the total wine consumption in the US) and Exhibit 5 (C-271, per capita wine consumption in the US) the wine industry is in the maturity stage. It could

In the most recent years, domestic sales of wine has declined constantly. The wine consumption is becoming more occasional. This is partially due to an aggressive anti-alcohol campaign and driving restrictions set by the local government, but also facilitated by a lack of marketing strategy: the wine market is loosing touch with the youth (the average age of wine drinker is gone up from 35 to 55) and young people are getting more keen to beer or alcohol pops.

Bieler, Kristen Wolfe (2006), “Behind the [ yellow tail ]® Phenomenon: How It Happened and What’s Next?” Beverage Media Group, February, pdf download.

This case describes the global development of wine industry, and how new world wine players occupied the global market share from old world wine producer gradually. It is very interesting that author selected the Britain as the sample stage for the battle between the new world wine campaign and the traditional campaign.

Foster’s Group is currently Australia’s largest producer of alcoholic beverages. The company has always relied heavily on their beer products as the major source of their revenue but with the recent acquisition of Southcorp Limited, the country looks to dominate the wine industry as well. The company has always been well known as having a very strong beer arm but is looking currently to sell their premium wine brands. With a strong response globally to their export of Australian locally produced wines, the company hopes to further increase their Australian presence by increasing the local sales volume of these wines.