by John Szabo, MS
It might at first seem outrageously oblique, but as I was re-reading recently Sun Tzu’s unsurpassed treaty The Art of War, I was struck by the lessons that could be drawn from the text and applied to the marketing of wine. And Greek wine comes to mind, having just returned from my fifth annual voyage to the cradle of the wine world. The purpose of the trip, in addition to judging at the 9th annual international wine competition in Thessaloniki, was to participate in a “branding strategy session” to help shape the future promotional strategy for the wines of Greece. Along with a group of international, non-Greek ‘experts’ from the US, UK, Brazil and Russia in the fields of wine journalism and importation/distribution, I had been invited by PRC, a marketing/PR company hired by the Wines of Greece to come up with a promotional strategy for Greek wines. We were to take part in a tasting of potential ‘ambassador’ wines and weigh in with our outsider’s views on Greek wine grapes, wine styles, labeling and other promotional advantages and disadvantages of Greek wines in an international context.
On day one, we sat down to blind taste our way through about 70 wines divided into five flights: 4 flights of single-variety wines, two white and two red, and one flight of mixed sweet wines. The particular grapes, Moschofilero and Assyrtiko for whites and Agiorgitiko and Xinomavro for reds were pre-selected based on 11 different criteria, such as the number of producers and production levels of each. It obviously makes no sense to spearhead a promotional campaign using a grape grown by 1 or 2 producers in small quantities, no matter how interesting. The actual ‘quality’ of the wine produced from each grape was, interestingly enough, not one of the selection criteria – PRC has no resident wine experts – that was our job. Sweet wines were naturally included, given Greece’s ancient history of sweet wine production.
After each flight we were asked place each of the grapes and their resultant wine styles in an international context, comparing them with other similar grapes from around the world, identifying their strengths and weaknesses, comparable price categories, and ultimately whether we believed it was a suitable variety on which to pin the vinous ambitions of Hellas. It was a challenging and demanding intellectual exercise. But that was not all, of course. Later that afternoon we were asked to verbally share our views with an intimate panel of industry stakeholders and senior executives from PRC. Each of the panelists provided his views on each of the flights and their relative potential to be an ‘ambassador’ grape. And this, too, was merely a warm up for the big symposium to come on day two, where we had the opportunity to share our views to a gathering of about 150 winemakers and winery owners from across the country.
So how would the legendary Sun Tzu have looked upon the prospects of Greek wine, speaking to us from remote history over 25 centuries ago, and would he have anything useful to say? Let’s have a look.
Sun Tzu says: “Generally, he who occupies the field of battle first and awaits his enemy is at ease; he who comes later to the scene and rushes into the fight is weary.”
John Szabo comments: Well, despite several thousand years’ head start in the wine making department, and even having taught the art to many of the countries that have now become the competition, Greece is definitely late on the scene. There is no remedy for that. The market is already fiercely competitive, and just about every serious exporting country is better, or at least is somewhat organized. Other fringe countries like Portugal or even Austria (a model of organization if there ever was one) are more established in the consumers’ mind this side of the Atlantic then Greece.
ST: “He whose ranks are united in purpose will be victorious”.
JS: Still profoundly true after 2500 years. While the purpose, that is, to sell wine abroad, is certainly common, I am not so sure about the ‘united ranks’ in the Greek wine industry. It is a challenge anywhere in the world to get a group of business people, operating independently, to come together to create a common strategy when ultimately they are in perceived competition with one another. The international wine market, although growing, is still finite and there is only so much market share for obscure wines. The Greeks, notorious free-thinkers and self-styled anarchists, are also very strongly tied to their regional origins. It is micro-chauvinism at its finest. What hails from where you hail is best. There is nothing inherently wrong in this belief, especially in the world of wine where origin is the one unassailable point of difference and potential competitive advantage. But at this point in the development of exports, it should be the underlying theme, not the overarching one.
Chang Yü, ancient commentator on Sun Tzu’s text, says: “Benevolence and righteousness may be used to govern a state but cannot be used to administer an army”.
JS: This could indeed spark a revolution, to suggest that the country that gave democracy to the world should abandon democratic process when it comes to marketing their wines. For an army to be successful in battle, there must be only one general, one chief commander who has the benefit of the full picture, who has designed the ultimate strategy for victory. It is impossible for each rank and file soldier to have a voice; this would lead to confusion and chaos. Greece, like everyone else, needs an independent body such as PRC to come up with a marketing strategy (which they have indeed done), which will ultimately serve the needs of everyone. After Alexander Kouros’ SWOT analysis of the industry at the Thessaloniki symposium, the commentary from the crowd, raising points that were often parochial or even irrelevant, made clear the need to establish one, non-democratic, driving force.
ST: “Anciently the skillful warriors first made themselves invincible and awaited the enemy’s moment of vulnerability”
JS: Here, Greece fares quite well. The dramatic development of the wine industry over the last couple of decades and the impressive rise in overall quality puts Greece in a strong position. No point going out to conquer the world with average quality wines; Greece cannot even compete in the bulk or sub-premium segment – cost of production is simply too high. Chile, South Africa, Argentina… you name it – all can produce better quality wines at the bottom end. Greece’s invincibility lies with the handful of indigenous varieties that have been understood and reworked, some even flirting with perfection. But not all, mind you. There is still tremendous work to do in the vineyards, identifying and propagating the right, virus-free clones, matching rootstocks with soils and regions and cultivars, and then learning how best to vinify the resulting fruit. The ambassador grapes identified by PRC, are, in my view good ones with which to start the campaign. They are distinctive and original and well established, they are produced in sufficient quantity to have an impact internationally and they offer more than a glimpse of the quality and potential of all Greek wines.
And finally, Sun Tzu’s most oft-quoted words: “Therefore I say: “Know the enemy and know yourself; in a hundred battles you will never be in peril. When you are ignorant of the enemy but know yourself, your chances of winning or losing are equal. If ignorant both of your enemy and of yourself, you are certain in every battle to be in peril.”
JS: I believe Greece is in peril. With some notable exceptions, my observation is that many Greeks are neither familiar with the wines available internationally nor even with some of the best wines made in their own country. Europeans in general are noted for being rather insular – just ask a sommelier from Burgundy about his/her favorite wines from Bordeaux or vice-versa, for a bemused raised eyebrow. The Italians call it ‘campanilismo’, where everyone rallies around their own campanile, or Church bell tower that is found in every village (why do you think that there is no single national body for the promotion of Italian wine). Campanilismo is alive and well in Greece, and it discourages winemakers from knowing and understanding what is happening in the rest of the world – a key success factor in any marketing campaign.
Overall, the Greek wine industry faces some serious challenges on the international market that must be addressed before the time comes to roll out their promotional campaign in earnest. Though I think Sun Tzu would agree: the battle is not lost. Greece possesses a wealth of high quality indigenous grape varieties, some of Europe’s best-equipped and most modern wineries, a critical mass of talented winemakers who have made the effort to go and study abroad and familiarize themselves with the competition, a range of climates and soils that in turn offer an impressive palette of stylistic possibilities, a proud tradition that is slowly but surely being revived, and a landscape of breathtaking beauty and positive associations in the minds of travelers. It won’t be easy, and immediate personal gain must be put on hold for the whole of the industry to be able succeed together, which will eventually lead back to personal gain. I, for one, look forward to following the story.
by John Szabo, MS
28.05.2009