Winery Benchmarks Program

The Winery Benchmarks program is an opportunity for you to join forces with other winery owners to create a better understanding of your industry and put practical business solutions to work immediately.

You will gain:

• Insight into different sales outlets, costs associated with producing a bottle/case of wine, gross margins and pricing mark-ups, sales per taster, inventory trends and more. 
• In-depth financial and operational analyses of your business
• Opportunity to interact with other successful winery owners and take part in dialogue to better understand your industry  
• Constructive feedback from an experienced Farm Credit East consultant.

This program helps owners answer questions about their business, including:

• How can I decrease labor expenses?
• How does my wine pricing and varieties compare with others in my region?
• How effective is my retail staff?
• How efficient is my production staff?
• Am I carrying too much inventory?
• How does my business measure up to other top wineries?
• How do I know when it’s time to expand my business?
• Is my compensation package competitive?

Winery owners throughout the Northeast use our benchmarking to:

• Identify the strengths and weaknesses of their businesses 
• Find strategies to capture the full market value of their products
• Create marketing that matches the quality of their wine
• Find new ways to control costs and gain efficiencies

The Winery Benchmarks program includes participants who are focused on achieving maximum results, including:

• Any wine or cidery business selling the majority of their product in 750 ml bottles
• Any winery or cidery business in business for 3+ plus years
• Any winery or cidery business selling more than 750 cases, annually
• Any winery or cidery with reconciled accounting reports
• Any winery or cidery using a POS or equivalent with the ability to provide production, inventory and sales data
• Any winery or cidery with the desire for self-improvement, willingness to learn and the willingness to share

Comprehensive financial and production records are a must. Profitability, while not a requirement, should be an important factor — if not the most important goal for the business.

You do not need to have an existing Farm Credit East relationship to participate in the Winery Benchmarks program.