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 delWine has been propagating for several years now that the Indian producers should take the lead and work with Bollywood or sports personalities, in particular super stars like Amitabh Bachchan and Sachin Tendulkar where our first preference would be the stars getting into the wine production and using the brand image to sell the wine-Brangelina Rose wine being a great success story during the last two years.
It is heartening to note that Grover Zampa Vineyards have taken the lead and have worked with the legendry Indian tennis player Vijay Amritraj to enter the market with a joint label just as the Wimbledon gets underway in London today. Although there may not have been elaborate launch parties yet but the UK launch will surely be a wine affair amidst the Wimbledon setting and about 150 people attending it.
A set of one red and one white wine has been launched with VA in bold letters and the signature of Vijay Amritraj adorning the bottle neck as well as the label. A booklet detailing his legendary performance at the Wimbledon will be inserted in each package. The red wine is a blend of Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon and Viognier whereas the white wine is barrel fermented Viognier Reserve. Sumedh informs delWine that they propose to make 2 batches of this wine, the first one being of approximately 1000 cases each.
The brand storyline to promote the wines as premium white and red wine was created by Grover Zampa for Vijay Amritraj. The brand is dedicated to expressing the passion, elegance and success associated with the legend of Amritraj.
Sumedh Singh Mandla, CEO of GZV has recently been travelling abroad extensively to promote exports. This is one of the initiatives taken by the company which is on a fast track to win back a  chunk of the market share it lost due to some internal problems during the last few years. He informs delWine, ‘we at Grover Zampa worked with Mr. Vijay Amritraj on this project for over two years with an idea to create top quality white and red wine reflective of Indian Terroir,’ and adds, ‘what we call the VA Collection wine will be distributed in international markets like UK, USA, Europe and also in India.’
The launch on June 29 at 5pm at St. James Court will see a well selected profile comprising of Key Sports Personalities/ Fashion/ Socialites/ Corporate, journalists from UK and key Food and Beverage people from the trade in London, says Mandla who will also be present at the event.
Over a period of time exports has evolved as a serious business focus for Grover Zampa. Says Mandla, ‘We currently export to 15 countries with France, Japan and UK as our top 3 markets. During the last 12 months we have opened several new markets including China, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Dubai. During the current fiscal year 2014-15 we are targeting 50 % growth in export business with increase of our footprints to around 25 countries. The new targeted markets this year would include: USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, additional Asian markets, Russian and additional European markets.
 According to Sumedh here are some of the international activities during the last 10 months:
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Participation in international awards. ‘We won 5 International awards at Decanter Asia Wine Awards and 3 awards at International Wine & Spirit Challenge Hong Kong last year,’ he says.
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Participation in HKTDC Wine & Spirits Fair, Hong Kong.
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Participation in "Indian Wine Days in Paris". An event organised in association with the Indian Embassy in Paris.
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2 launch events in Dubai at One & Only Royal Mirage and Sheraton Mall of Emirates Dubai. Introduction of our wines at key Hotels and MMI retail shops in Dubai.
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Showcasing our wines during London wine fair.
GVZ is currently focusing on the following wines for export markets:
Grover La Reserve, Grover La Reserve Blanc, Grover Art Collection Series-Sauvignon blanc, Viognier Shiraz Rose', Shiraz and Cabernet Shiraz.
Subhash Arora
Booklet
Tags: Grover Zampa, Wimbledon, Vijay Amritraj, VA, Sumedh Singh Mandla |