What are the best markets for Argentine wine

In the German city of Düsseldorf took place recently the 25th edition of Prowein, the most important wine show in the world. And while world consumption seems to be stagnating, participation has been higher than in the previous year; more than 6,900 exhibitors from 64 countries and more than 61,500 visitors representing world trade from 142 countries. In recent years, Prowein has become an unmissable place for wineries, as the entire wine trade pbades, surpbading the London Wine Fair in London (United Kingdom) and the Vinexpo in Bordeaux (France).

Infobae For three days, he went through the exhibition in order to understand which are the main target markets for Argentine wine and which appear on the radar with good development potential.

At the moment, the main problem in Argentina is not quality, because today it produces the best wines of its history and these are very appreciated by the press and the international professionals. But there are other underlying issues that complicate the panorama, and relate to the infrastructure, the inefficiency of the production chain and the lack of free trade agreements. , among others.

However, for the protagonists, the results were very positive. This opens a new opportunity to "re-enchant" the global consumer, because Argentina has a positive image thanks to football, its natural landscapes, meat, tango and, little by little, wine. The strategy is to go market by market, starting with the main buyers of Argentine wine, and focusing on the training of "key players" (journalists, sommeliers, chefs, etc.) in order to make enjoy the consumers.

Resources are always (and will be) scarce for what needs to be done, but the will is very big and, more importantly, there is a lot of wine and it is good to sell. And while Argentina remains the largest consumer of the sector, the sustained and sustainable growth of its activity resides in exports. Therefore, understanding the most attractive markets and their characteristics will be essential for the future of Argentine wine.

What are the main markets for Argentine wine and why

United States: the most important; you have to take care a lot

For Cecilia Razquin (Catena Zapata), importers' sales give the United States a very satisfactory growth, and Argentine wine already exceeds Chilean wine; its main competitor. It still accounts for 40% of Argentine exports, mainly on the East Coast and Florida. But in California (the country's main wine center) and in the center (Colorado, Nevada, Virginia, etc.), there are many spaces to continue the "malbequeando" (with grape varieties and blends), at least for 5 or 10 years.

According to Rafael Calderón, Argentine wine is between 9 and 10%. "We must regain our enthusiasm and reverse the trend: with the good wines of the 2017 and 2018 harvests, we can re-engage consumers". In addition, there is a person from Wines of Argentina, who lives in Chicago 28 years ago and works directly with retail chains.

UK: the good news

For Alberto Arizu (h), Argentina is very good and malbec too, but Brexit has revolutionized the market by causing some changes, although the interest in Argentina is intact. At Catena Zapata, the best news comes from the UK, because until last year, Argentina did not stop seducing, but apparently the big customers are now very excited, because the consumers begin to ask for Argentine wines.

In the UK, they are very demanding with prices, and generally to activate a wine, they decrease the suggested month. And if it's not sold, they'll take it out. These are the same clear rules for all wines that matter.
For some major wineries, it is the largest market in the trade and trade sector. Malbec is still very popular with English consumers and Argentine wine is a very valuable option. Much progress has been made, but the potential is greater.

"We are dealing with this market via an importer and if a customer already has Malbec, we offer a Malbec bivarietal, or from another region, but still in the same line, because customers are buying today a Argentinian wine for Malbec.The prices are very competitive with cheap wines, but this is not the profile of Fabre, who sells his reserve in 15 pounds, the Gran Reserva in 22 pounds and the Grand Vin in more than 30 ", commented Hervé Joyaux Fabre.

Brazil: conquering the big neighbor

Everyone agrees that he is the big neighbor on which to bet. And while you see how good Chile is doing, you have to mix and give again. It is clear that the Brazilian wine consumer admires and loves Argentine wines. For example, in Salentein, out of the 30,000 annual visitors to the winery, 8,000 arrive from Brazil. It is obvious that there is a lot of space, but it will only be possible to continue to grow and offer quality and more.

By proximity and potential, the challenge is to conquer Chile again and dominate it with leadership. But Brazil does not escape the difficulties of Latin America, where an economic problem still arises, generating a lot of instability and increasing risks. The most logical thing for Argentina would be to exploit Brazil as a market, but every investment that makes a warehouse look like a needle in a haystack, that's why the efforts made so far 'now have not given much.

Canada: the jewel of the north

Currently, it is the third largest market for Argentine wine, and we have to come back to the issue because the category is down and it's a very large market. Argentine wines are more recognized on the west coast, due to the influence of the United States, but purchases are made by the state in monopoly. It is a difficult system because you have to overcome different obstacles to enter; get a list, then the distribution in the stores, and finally invest so that the wines are known. And if they turn, they stay longer.

China: the obsession that does not have to be a wall

China is the grand universe in which everyone aspires to grow and has become the great seizer of opportunity. Argentina must go out to capture them.

In Catena Zapata, they claim that China is still an obsession, mainly because there is much to grow there and throughout Asia. "Currently, Chile brings us many badets," said Cecilia Razquin.

Today, the Chinese are more with Chile and Australia; leaving the French a little aside (they reduced sales of Bordeaux by 35% in 2018); mainly because in the Vinexpo of Hong Kong to be held next May, the host country will be Chile and in 2018 it was Australia; although here the proximity weighs too. But there are not many secrets, Chinese consumers are followers in full research and learning, "investigating the world of wine". However, any strategy involves many resources.

And while the wineries focus on developing more and more accurate wines, which speak of their place of origin and their own character, growing in markets as large as those of China has more to do with the distributor with the land People still have a hard time making the difference between Argentinean areas, it's a struggle, but that makes sense with only 3% of the world wine. We are far from the recognition of the regions, for the moment in China it is Argentina, whereas in the United States we are already talking about Mendoza and the valley of Uco, for example.

Perhaps, with the benefit that the current wines are more eloquent about their origin and the greater information, it is possible to click on Chinese consumers faster.

Mario Giordano (director of Wofa) has set up a series of workshops with key players, focused on different markets. This year, it will be very close to China, with a strategic vision to understand what to do. The country will visit a specialist who works in one of the largest distributors, to draw the conclusions that serve. For its part, the promotion in China consists in training 15 ambbadadors, in 15 cities, to leave a little of the World Social Malbec Day in the consulates, and to train to carry out commercial activities. There is a lot of hope in China, although it is difficult because it is so different culture. Buyers are generally respectable but unpredictable. To grow in a market, wine needs time and a culture of consumption. In China, it is not that they are reducing consumption, but that they are moving from country to country and that they have their own criteria for following things.

In China, Chile put in place a plan some time ago, identical to that of Australia. Because of their free trade agreements, they arrive with 10% cheaper taxes and the Chinese buyer has already broken the scheme. Argentina needs to make a long-term plan, as it still does not know anything about the local sphere beyond Messi and tango.

Japan: Far East France

It's a small market but very interesting because of its sophistication; They are the 4th largest champagne buyer in the world. The Japanese market is very similar to the European market, with low margins leading the business to retail volume, but there is a very big growth opportunity with the best commercial wines; restaurants and wine bars.

South Korea: the little Asian giant

Argentine wines perform better because prices are between $ 30 and $ 35 per 9-liter box, with healthier margins and an increase in volume and value. There, Trapiche is already a brand and is in the top 20 most recognized. For example, this is the main market of the Trapiche Terroir series and, in general, the top fork of the winery, tripling local sales.

Europe: seducing the old continent

In Europe, Chile is even more than Argentina, although the national wines are concentrated in the medium and high ranges. "Nicolás Catena Zapata and Mundus Bacillus Terrae Malbec started selling at La Place de Bordeuax in 2018, where the vision of the most demanding buyers in the world converges," said Cecilia Razquin.

In Holland, wines are coming out of giant warehouses and are the ones fighting the most, alongside the British. But also those who sell the most, and Argentina is very well placed, strengthened in recent years by the good image of the queen. Pink and white wines grow there, in the big chains as well as in the restaurants and the wine bars. Salentein; it plays a bit of the local; has set up a system of franchises allowing it to reach more than 100 wine bars in the main Dutch cities, which gives it a very good positioning which obviously extends to all the national wines.

Latin America: with all the regional potential

In some stands, they were surprised by the expectation of the Chinese and suddenly invaded the Latinos, from countries where the structure of sale of Argentine wines already exists, where new companies have emerged and many opportunities. It became clear that this change was mainly due to the strong growth of the fair.

Peru is a growing market thanks to the boom in gastronomy. And the same thing happens in Colombia, although they have just imposed a new tax based on the price list of each point of sale, generating many problems of positioning.

Mexico is another potential market. Unfortunately, a 12% tariff could be removed to reinforce everything that can generate the growth of domestic wine in this country. But it will be impossible to eliminate it, because the autopartists who see in the possible import an enemy are opposed.

Other: the market is the world

Scandinavian monopolies, which are difficult figurines, have shown great interest. However, the Swedish monopoly (wines are therefore bought in the Nordic country through the state) has warned against the risk of the Argentine economy. And while it does not directly affect sales, it's a stumbling block, and every warehouse must explain why there is no risk of operating with the country, although the doubt regarding the "national supply chain" has already begun to be felt.

Many people from Romania and Eastern Europe, from countries that many vineyards have not envisioned. It must be remembered that at the recent ASI Sommelier World World Contest; who won a German; The top ten were also dominated by sommeliers from Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Serbia and Russia, among others. And this testifies to an emerging wine culture in this region.