How does a hidden gem in the wine world become a star? How does a star suddenly take on iconic status? At VitaBella, these are the questions we’re regularly asked, and the challenges we face in meeting our customers’ expectations. In the space of 20 years, we’ve accompanied a great many of them, on a journey that’s not so simple after all. Because success also – and above all – involves moments of doubt and questioning.
Take Champagne Henri Giraud, for example. I still remember our meeting in Aÿ 12 years ago. How far we’ve come from a hidden gem that was still unrecognized in 2010 – when the quality had long been exceptional – to a star Champagne House at the dawn of 2024. Twelve years of working with VitaBella to help HG create the next generation of Champagne Houses by rethinking strategy and completely repositioning the brand. Twelve years ago, the Henri Giraud Experience was born, and year after year, it has created an ever-stronger emotional bond with lovers of fine wines around the world.
This is the image of a modern winery (or champagne house). Preserve your values and keep them permanent by evolving your brand’s heritage and culture. Build and give voice to an ever-growing number of people around these values to create a strong bond with your community. And above all, don’t forget that for the new generations, great wine is no longer a means of defining status; it becomes first and foremost the memory of a moment. By understanding this, Henri Giraud has been able to move serenely through the years from “Champagne hidden gem” to “Star Champagne house”.
In fact, this has been VitaBella’s primary proposition since our creation: “Taking wine estates to the next level”. Our dream at VitaBella has always been to imagine that today’s stars could become tomorrow’s icons, and that tomorrow’s hidden gems could become the future stars. This has become reality for many of the wine brands we have advised around the world. Because the wheel is turning, and rankings are not set in stone. If the real image of a luxury brand evolves inexorably, so too does the image perceived by consumers, which constantly creates new opportunities. In the world of wine, it’s a mistake to believe that you’ll always be a hidden gem: either you become yesterday’s hidden gem at the risk of becoming irrelevant, or you become tomorrow’s Star at the risk – for today’s stars – of seeing them become irrelevant in their turn among new generations of consumers.
Contact Guillaume Jourdan via LinkedIn
