Having conquered local and national wine markets since he purchased Yallingup winery Wills Domain in 2000, Darren Haunold has set his sights on capitalising on global opportunities.
Having conquered local and national wine markets since he purchased Yallingup winery Wills Domain in 2000, Darren Haunold has set his sights on capitalising on global opportunities.
The former WA Business News 40under40 First Amongst Equals winner has been exploring avenues for his wine in Dubai and Canada this year, and has negotiated the foundation of a preferred supplier arrangement with the Rotana Hotel Group.
Mr Haunold’s company is currently formalising a wine list for the hotel group, which is planning an expansion of 11 hotels to be built during the next four years.
The winery has also developed a relationship with a group of independent stores in Alberta, Canada, and is looking to compete for a tender in Ontario in 2007.
And Wills Domain is establishing a growing presence in the US wine market, having access through distributors to 12 states on the east coast.
“America is a target market in the wine industry at the moment, with rapidly expanding imports of wine and Australia generally being an attractive destination for Americans,” Mr Haunold said.
“We started our relationship in January this year and we sent our first shipment in April and another in June.”
The company recently sent a third shipment and is planning a fourth in the New Year.
Mr Haunold said Wills Domain was capitalising on the demand for premium wines.
“We actually sell a lot of cabernet in America and reserve wines around $US40 retail. It’s a fantastic price to achieve,” he said. “It’s about a point of difference, being a boutique family-owned producer.
“We market that strongly because, particularly in markets like America, small producers like me can source the right markets with the hope of establishing the right price points.”
Mr Haunold said the 2006 vintage had been a success, winning awards for its semillon, chardonnay, cabernet sauvignon and semillon sauvignon blanc varieties.
“We’re continuing to build our distribution. There’s greater consumer support behind the brand – word-of-mouth profiling really helps,” he said.
According to Mr Haunold, Wills Domain’s focus on the boutique end of the market was insulating it from intense global competition in the high-quantity, lower-priced wine sector.
“Certainly, we’re not affected at our price point. It would be very different if we were a mass producer,” he said.
“I think Australians are very parochial and there will always be underlying support for everyday drinking wines.”
Mr Haunold said while many Asian markets had traditionally favoured French and Chilean wines, due to their price points and ability to export cheaply to the region, this would change as wine became a central part of social culture.
“The palate needs to develop. As it becomes more refined, they will progress to more expensive wines,” he said.
• Nominations are now open for the 2007 40under40 Awards. The awards are open to WA business owners and executives, working for a WA-based company, who are under the age of 40 as at December 31 2006. To nominate, visit http://www.40under40.com.au/. Applications close on Monday December 11 at 5pm.
