Samenvatting

Germany has a known a growth of organic consumption within the recent years, however its consumption is growing faster than the German wine production which is still relatively low. Therefore, a large amount of wine is imported from other countries, making Germany the largest organic wine importer in Europe. Within Germany, Berlin is the leading city for organic wines retailers, however the German capital has also seen a growth of a more specific kind of organic wines, the natural wines. Natural wines are made of organic grapes and vinified with the least possible inputs other than grapes. Even thought, the natural wine scene is growing in Berlin, it is still a niche product and has room to grow, especially when compared with global leading markets such as Paris or London. Sustainable wine distributors, suppliers and other stakeholders have a major part to play in this possible growth as it could be an opportunity for them. However, the market being relatively small for now, most distributors have a small structure and lack of marketing strategy and budget. Thus, the research aimed at answering the following main research question: How distributors can promote sustainable wines towards retailers in Berlin? Therefore, the research was divided into four subquestion about the following subjects: The common characteristics of retailers, their purchasing behaviour, the sustainable wine offer on the market and the successful tool to distribute sustainable wines. To find these elements, a survey was sent to Berlin retailers, sustainable wine lists from retailers were analysed and successful sustainable wine distributors were interviewed. It was found that Berlin retailers are mainly located in the neighbourhood of Neukölln, Prenzlauer Berg and Kreuzberg and opened since 2012. Besides, these retailers organize three types of events: tastings with winemakers, pop-up and wine pairing dinner. Retailers have chosen sustainable wine for its taste and most of them have more than 50% of sustainable wine on their wine list. Considering their behaviour, retailers purchase wines from multiple wholesalers but a significant part of them also source directly with wineries. Taste, price and producers’ knowledge are the most important purchasing factor for retailers whereas the most valuable aspects from a supplier are a close relationship and tailored recommendations as well as transparency and wine information. Sustainable wine available on the market are mostly ranged between 20€ and 50€ with a great diversity of region of origin, the most represented being France, Spain, Italy, Germany and Austria. The main difficulty with sustainable wine distribution is the lack of consumer awareness, especially in young market. Distributors could benefit from a growing awareness toward sustainable products as well as the support of the restaurant industry. The successful tools for sustainable wine distribution are the collaboration at all level of the supply chain, from the producers to the final market, a product marketing and sourcing relying on quality-driven products, products commitment and producers’ knowledge. Considering the results of this research, the recommendations for Berlin sustainable wine distributors are the followings. Sourcing must include diverse and quality-focused products which fit the market demand and price. Besides, to create a relationship with producers, it is needed to collaborate by including them on the marketplace, for instance with partner events or products. Lastly, distributors should target specific retailers with a sustainable approach in Neukölln, Prenzlauer Berg and Kreuzberg. To develop a relationship with the retailers, distributors must be customer-focused, offering tailored recommendations and working closely with them, for instance by organizing regular tastings.