Generation Y-ine

Connecting the dots for consumers

KAT PICKFORD

A NEW website that connects wine enthusiasts with the wines they love made a big splash at this year’s Marlborough Wine & Food Festival. Created by local digital entrepreneur Katie Cunningham, Wineway promotes participating Marlborough wineries and makes it easier for consumers to purchase small amounts of wine from different wineries and get them shipped direct to their door.

Utilising the power of technology, the online platform has simplified a very complicated process, providing a seamless solution for the wine industry and its customers, Katie says. “The whole aim is to give wineries a platform to showcase their wines and their unique stories. Not everyone wants or can afford to buy wine by the case, instead with the website, people can virtually shop their way round the region choosing their favourite wines from a variety of wine producers.”

Katie grew up in Marlborough and gained exposure to many of the different facets of the wine industry at Allan Scott - working in the vineyard, cellar, cellar door and behind the scenes in the office. When travelling overseas she picked up a role as brand ambassador for Misty Cove Wines in the Netherlands, hosting tastings and events, educating people about Marlborough and Misty Cove’s wine.

Through her experiences pouring and talking about wines, Katie noticed consumers often talked about wine in a very different way to how it was sold, and after “connecting a few dots”, began to understand how technology could create some solutions for the industry. “People would ask for wine that tasted of strawberries, or that was fresh and crisp, which is not how wine is sold to us on its labels or through its awards,” Katie says.

“In 2020 I built my first online store, and through that process learned that I loved tech and building intricate systems that could carry out complicated processes behind clean, user-friendly shop fronts.” Since then Katie has helped many others create online stores, while doing her day job, working for the Canadian multinational e-commerce company, Shopify.

Last year Wine Marlborough approached Katie to create a solution to connect consumers and wineries at the Marlborough Wine & Food Festival. “Previously wineries had been doing this great job at the festival, connecting with consumers, sharing their amazing stories and educating them about their wines, only to have them walk away, possibly not remembering very much,” Katie laughs. “This year festival goers could shop as they tasted, filling their online cart with all their favourite wines, essentially creating a highlight reel of their day.”

Katie was impressed with how seamlessly it rolled out. “The only heavy lifting we had to do was packing the boxes and filling the orders. But the best part of the day was getting to hang out with everyone, we are such big fans of the wineries and helping promote them and sharing their stories is a big part of our mission.”

While Katie and her small team are focussed on working with Marlborough wineries at the moment, there’s potential to expand the business further, she says. “We have some great connections around the world and would love to expand to an international market. I noticed there was huge demand when I was travelling; everyone wants a drop of their favourite wine.”