Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/705606
9 2 V I N E YA R D & W I N E RY M A N A G E M E N T | J u l y - A u g 2 016 w w w. v w m m e d i a . c o m product from A to B, while we're the professionals at making that wine taste the way it should taste. Plus, they have the direct store contacts and our distributor has really given us tremendous access to the market." Heritage recently entered into an agreement to stock its Jersey Wine in all Wegmans grocery stores in New Jersey, for example, which Heritage directly credits to distribu- tor relationships. "It's a point of validation," he says. "Many stores Heritage started out self-distrib- uting its Jersey Wine, which ended up keeping him on the road fulfilling orders more than he'd like, he says, and away from the winery. It's since partnered with Fedway Asso- ciates for wholesale distribution. "If you have the ability to self- distribute, a lot of people would say, 'Why would you ever pay somebody else to deliver your prod- uct?,' Heritage says. "In my mind, it's all about specialization. They're the professionals at getting the seem to have the mentality of, 'OK, if Fedway is going to represent this wine, it must have a good price-to- quality ratio, so this must be some- thing I can sell." Heritage can track inventory and sales in real time online, including reports on which accounts are per- forming the strongest, which lets him target promotions and other efforts. Says Heritage: "I do a lot of off- site tastings for the brand, at vari- ous liquor stores and trade tastings, but not having to do those deliver- ies all the time really frees us up to focus on wine quality and growing the business." And that's the key consideration. Starting out, it's critical to under- stand every aspect of your business and how each piece functions with- in your overall plan. For many, that means keeping as many operations as possible in-house. But, as the business scales, it's just as impor- tant to prioritize which functions are critical to your core business and which are better served by outsourcing to experts who know those functions inside and out. Options abound when it comes to distribution and fulfillment, and by better understanding exactly what you need from a distribution partner for each of your labels, you can bet- ter craft a customized solution for each — without sacrificing quality. Tom Wilmes is a freelance writer living in beer-soaked Boulder, Colo. He contributes a weekly craft-beer column to the Boulder Daily Camera newspaper and writes for several national beer-related publications. Comments? Please e-mail us at feedback@vwmmedia.com.