If anyone wanted to get in the wine business, the Napa Valley Vintners would be the place to start. And you would be starting at the very top. Thanks to friend Kate Jones, who was the NVVs Director of Public Relations, I got that opportunity.
I was asked to present design concepts for a special marketing event at the U.S. Embassy in London. Every VIP in the wine and food industry in the UK was on the guest list. It was the NVVs first overseas marketing event and a lot was at stake. The theme was “Civilized Wines of the Wild West.” The graphic I presented was a western saddle sitting astride a wine bottle. It was enthusiastically approved and received. I learned later that the Embassy party was accented with hay bales and cowboy attire. UK guests were encouraged to be wine country Californians for the night.
That began my 10 year relationship with the NVV and its membership. I designed and produced all the marketing materials for five market tours both domestic and overseas. The requirements for each tour included advertising campaigns, invitation suites, city by city tasting booklets, tasting notes and other requirements. As many as 60 vintners were included in each annual tour totaling 20 cities in the U.S., Europe and Asia.
The work was fun and frenetic. Tight deadlines came city by city and there was seldom enough time. We never missed an event deadline and the guests were delighted.
The Napa Valley Vintners campaigns were awarded national Addy Certificates for graphic excellence.
Project Highlights
- Designed five market tours for the NVV
- Everything from theme graphics to tasting booklets
- Production management for all requirements
Date
2016
