Yesterday, 26 June 2026, Emily Hay attended the Wine Communicators of Australia (WCA) Growth Summit in Adelaide, which provided key growth insights for Australian wine businesses. While the focus of the day was strategies for international markets, what we heard gets to the heart of successful brand-building which resonate across all markets:

Relationships are the strategy.

As a team whose values are centred on being a true partner to the businesses and people we work with, this spoke to our hearts.

Every speaker addressed the importance of relationships in our businesses and how they drive resilience, innovation, growth and ultimately, the future. This is true for the way we craft our brand at home, as well as abroad. Here are our key relationship takeouts from the day (all broadly paraphrased, apart from a few golden quotes hastily scrawled in Emily’s notebook)

  • What are the top 10% of global DTC wine businesses (using Commerce7) doing?
    • Using data and acting on it to build relationships with their customers
    • Capturing email addresses from 97% of cellar door guests
    • Using email to connect with their customers at least 10 x per year
  • “The future of wine is intelligent” Andrew Kamphuis
  • Wine growth happens when we allow others to build their own relationship with wine. “You don’t win by lecturing. You win by paying attention.” Brendan Carter
  • Personal relationships breed trust, but you can’t expect to reap the rewards immediately. Invest long term.
  • Personal discovery is high as the Asian market shifts from one of obligation to enjoyment. Join people in their education journey, real people sharing real experience and insight. “Connecting > Correcting” Iain Langridge
  • Collaboration builds resilience. Work together, resist the urge to turn inwards during times of stress.
  • Partnerships are a two-way street. Invest time, money and effort in those who are supporting you.
  • Digital relationships matter, too! Invest in content and show up in the channels audiences use to seek connection.
  • International guests are seeking access. They can get a product anywhere, but they travel to seek connection and build relationships with the people and the place. How do we design our experiences to facilitate this?
  • Show up ready to work with the travel trade, they’re your partners just like your wine distribution networks.
  • Digital hygiene matters. How are your data points helping to build a relationship before your customer walks in the door? What questions are they seeking answers for? What relationships don’t even start because of outdated, missing or conflicting information?
  • The international tourist has real sales value. Data shows the average order value is 5x greater than the domestic tourist, and there are now tools to help make things MUCH easier, including repeat sales at home.

The wine sector was born from a love of coming together and sharing. This day was a lovely reminder that the wine sector has hope that comes from the very core of who we are.

So, how are you prioritising your business relationships?

 

Thank you to WCA, the Government of South Australia Department of State Development, all the event partners and speakers.

CCL Label, Angelica Crabb Wine Australia, Andrew Kamphuis Commerce 7, Brendan Carter Unico Zelo and Bottle Shock, Alexia Roberts Randall Wine Group, Louis Schofield World’s Apart Wines, Iain Langdridge In2Asia, Liz Mencel Purple Feet, Mashoom Tait Bird in Hand, Ant Grundel TradeStart SA, Dan Killey Brand Warrior, Emily Harper Australian Vintage, Mike Brown M Squared Wine, Wendy Killeen Stanton & Killeen Wines, Robin Shaw Wine Tourism Australia, Matt Annear Australia Tasting Room, Luke Tyler Hahndorf Hill, Ashton Hills and Wirra Wirra, Peter Saturno Longview Vineyard, Vanessa McKinney UK Department of State Development, SA,