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You won't find the nation's fastest-growing line of wines at
your local market. And that's just the way Jeff Hansen likes it.
It's part of the sales strategy of Hansen and his colleagues at Lodi's Global Wine Group who are bent on promoting their Jewel Collection at fine-wine shops and restaurants nationwide.
Global Wine, which recently moved into new digs, has stomped on traditional wine marketing. It is growing by offering a finequality wine at a consistently affordable price - $9.99 a bottle - making it available only in classy retail outlets and nice restaurants, keeping overhead costs low and affording a healthy profit margin for distributors and retailers.
Global Wine grew out of Hansen's disgust with the way the wine business was being run.
"I was fed up with how wineries have priced their wines," said Hansen, chief executive officer of the company. "There's a great wine pricing conspiracy. They've been overpricing wines for years, basically charging whatever they want. I'm not interested in financing someone who chooses to five in a $3 million mansion in Sonoma.
In 2001, after Global Wine's first full year of production, the company sold fewer than 9,000 cases, and in 2002 sales topped 35,000 cases. This year, Global Wine produced 100,000 cases.
In three years, Global's distribution of the nine Jewel varieties has grown from seven states to 44, including such marketing coups as getting into Cost Plus World Markets and Whole Foods, and getting on wine fists at Four Seasons and RitzCarlton hotels, and Morton's and Ruth Chris steakhouses.
On the way, Global Wine Group has collected kudos. Jewel has produced 10 award-winning wines with three of those capturing gold medals and two getting silver medals.
Grapes to money: Hansen said the company is on target to gross more than $6 million this year. Global, which has about 60 shareholders, achieved profitability in September 2002.
The company is preparing for its second-round offering to raise another $1.5 million. The first round of financing raised about $2 million,...