I had never heard of orange wine, but Kristin knew something about it. Originally created in ancient Georgia (the country not the state) by allowing skin contact of white wine grapes before being macerated, orange wine was revived in the 1970s by Italians, who have refined its flavor and production in the decades since. And, Kristin's particular expertise is in Italian wines. It would become the lynchpin to her rebound strategy.

Kristin is all about getting the data and testing propositions. She was convinced that orange wine would be a huge trend, but first they’d have to test it. They launched it in July in 160 Whole Foods stores alongside other Nomadica SKUs, and without a dollar in marketing or coupons, they saw spectacular product velocity - four times the average in the category - and they got a 30% lift with other Nomadica SKUs. The verdict was in, and orange wine was a hit, and Whole Foods was ready for more. 

Next year, Nomadica is expanding with Whole Foods and other big box natural/organics. They are focusing on Amazon Fresh for e-tailing, since that’s a natural connection given the Whole Foods success story. But, the trick is really sourcing the wine. There aren’t delicious, reasonably-priced orange wines in barrels waiting to be canned. Kristin’s sommelier skills identified the right product profile for going to market. Her Head Winemaker/Supply Chain & Operations Leader Corey identified the methods, sources and fruits in Sonoma, Napa and Lodi to create the product. Nomadica has to contract for the creation of the exact formula that they wanted a year in advance. It takes a lot of planning and effort to bring a whole new product to market next Spring.

In hindsight, the Live nation catastrophe was a blessing. It was the catalyst for a streamlined Nomadica that developed a new product line with incredible potential. And, where other big box natural/organics were unimpressed before, they’re more than receptive now. Nomadica now has a product line and a distribution channel that matches with that target market segment, the one that translates into a much higher multiple. And, they’re in the process of completing a funding round that will allow them to quadruple production for 2024.

And, that wine behemoth that paid a fortune for an exclusive placement for their canned wine? Their product didn’t resonate with the Live Nation customer base - proof that Nomadica’s product has a special product/market fit with the customer that they are targeting. The competition attempted to crush them, but now it’s Nomadica that is crushing it with orange wine. Feel free to order some while you can.