The Coming Crisis in the Spanish Wine Industry

Abstract

It appears quite likely that the worldwide demand for wine has been declining for over a decade now. While a number of reasons for this changing consumer behaviour have been advanced, no one really knows what factors are driving this market downward. This changing demand structure has very serious implications for Spanish wine makers because the fastest decline in demand is at the low priced end of the market. That is exactly the part of the market where Spanish wine makers have their strongest position. Four endgame strategies available to Spanish wine makers are presented and analyzed. Finally, a four step action program is outlined that is intended to give Spanish makers their best chance of surviving these new market conditions.