Coping with changes in a sector in crisis: the case of small Spanish wineries

Abstract

From a century-old artisanal way of making wines to the recent establishment of designations of origin, the wine industry in many European regions has been facing increasing demands, in a continuously changing wine environment. Today, many more wine regions are competing for consumers\u27 dollars, are confronting lack of generational renewal or are facing swings in wine consumption. So, how do winery operators, particularly those running small or family businesses, cope with the new developments occurring in the world of wines? The present study examines these issues from the perspective of a group of Spanish winery operators. General agreement exists regarding the opportunities that arise from the modernisation of the local wine industry, with stricter quality controls, mechanisation and other aspects facilitating the transition from making wines for household consumption to making commercial wines. Despite the gravity of current threats, most operators have planned and are implementing specific long-term strategies to maximise potential opportunities, including product quality and diversification. However, investments are very costly for many small wineries to sustain. Thus, it is argued that the wine sector and government bodies will need to intensify efforts to improve infrastructure, marketing, education and other areas to assist winery operators to confront challenges and achieve long-term survival

Perceived Benefits and Challenges to Wine Tourism Involvement: An International Perspective

“…With the millions of tourists leaving wine‐producing regions and countries after their vacation and with the current limitations in place, there are potentially as many forgone opportunities for wineries to showcase their products, their region and ultimately sell wines. Moreover, on the basis of what previous studies have identified (Alonso et al ., , ; Alonso and Liu, ) and some of the present study's comments, the anti‐drink‐drive laws appear to affect many visitors and travellers' decision to not venture to wine regions. These concerns may also lead to not truly and fully appreciating the landscape, the wine region and its wines, with resulting financial losses that seriously affect not only many winery businesses but also their short term operations and long‐term sustainability.…”

“…Similarly, Italian and Spanish respondents strongly agreed that the anti‐drink‐drive laws had caused major challenges to making gains from wine tourism. This finding is in line with recent wine tourism research conducted in Spain (Alonso et al ., , ; Alonso and Liu, ) that noticed both issues through face‐to‐face interviews among local winery owners and managers. However, apart from only these two studies, to date, these seemingly serious problems had either not been noticed or critically discussed in wine tourism research, especially outside Spain.…”

“…Another legislative decision, stricter laws to fight drink‐drive offenders were, according to winery owners and managers, negatively affecting the image of wine tourism in the eyes of visitors and consumers (Alonso et al ., , ; Alonso and Liu, ). Again, there appeared to be no alternative ways for wineries to minimize or overcome the impacts of this legislation.…”

“…The framework illustrates that as many of the participants' comments indicate, there is clear concern about the impacts airport controls and anti‐drink‐drive laws are having on consumers and, ultimately, on wine sales. These finding are in line with previous wine tourism research (Alonso et al ., , ; Alonso and Liu, ). Further, Figure illustrates that the role of government legislation appears to be very influential, forcing wineries and visitors to comply with security and safety laws through coercive measures (fines and other forms of punishment).…”

“…Alonso et al . (, ) and, more recently, Alonso and Liu () documented this problem among Spanish wineries, whereby the ban to carry liquids (i.e. over 100 millilitres) through security checks discouraged tourists from purchasing local wines.…”