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From Mom To Entrepreneur: How This Woman Is Disrupting The Wine Industry

This article is more than 6 years old.

As winter gives way to spring, the warmer weather ushers in wine festivals across the country, where vendors stock their booths and hoist their banners to offer the latest vintages to consumers.  Sundresses and khaki shorts parade around the maze of tables to taste the latest offerings.

But, there’s something different this time!  One particular wine vendor is attracting the bulk of the crowd, where sexy young women in pink and black tanks affix washable tattoos and lip gloss on grandmothers, scantily clad women, men and women alike.  Now virtually barren are the booths of other wine vendors that tell the same, tired story to their ever-shrinking loyal patrons.

It all started one afternoon in a small Georgia town.  After going to the grocery store to pick up a few bottles of wine for a party, Tami Fricks soon realized that she had no idea how differentiate between good or bad wine. 

Yes, she knew what wines paired well with certain foods. But when it came to choosing a brand, it seemed that only the price-tag differentiated “good wine” from “bad wine” — so many labels, so many choices.  Later, at the party, she expressed her frustration about wine and labels to friends, who all expressed the same emotion.  It was then that Fricks realized she had found a “pain point” that had to be solved.

As a mother of three, Fricks held her kids, of course, as her highest priority.  But the wine issue continued to occupy her.  She knew that if she could offer consumers a great wine at a great price and, at the same time, package it with a catchy label that women could relate to, problem “solved.”

At the time, most wines presented in simple or elegant labels aiming to give off vibes of five-star restaurants.  But Fricks soon discovered that many of these wines were nothing more than budget beverages.  The labels were lying to consumers.

So while the kids were at school and asleep, Fricks began thinking of how to best communicate to consumers through the wine bottle.  And thanks to several late nights with friends and a creative artist at Cartoon Network, Fricks came up with a name, label and found an award-winning, Chilean vineyard to deliver a great tasting product.  So Sassy Bitch wine was born. 

It’s Not Just A Wine, It’s An Attitude

Realistically, most wine-drinkers lack trained palettes to differentiate wine by tannins, acidity, or other sophisticated metrics.  They just want something that tastes good and functions as a talking-piece at parties. Fricks nailed it.  She channeled emotional appeal through her wine label, Sassy Bitch wine, and turned a $500.00 investment into a million- dollar seller.

What separates Fricks from the rest of the industry is the attitude that exudes from her label. While many competitors sell the integrity of their vineyard with sleek and embossed labels, she sells persona – an attitude.  There is absolutely no mistaking that hot pink, zebra-skinned label with the flashy pants and heels. 

It’s an instant conversation piece that provokes emotion and creates an immediate “connection.”  And it is this connection that drives the choice at the check-out counter.  As the label says, “We all know one… You might be one!”

Know Your Customer: Wine Must Tell A Story

Wine is more than just for drinking.  It’s about a story.  Millennials in particular drive the trend of story-based wine and more important, consume about half of the wine sold in America.  Still each year, thousands of wines are rated by “professional” tasters on a 100-point scale, with the best wines receiving 90 points or higher.

Recent surveys suggest that Millennials frown on the “point system,” seeing it as a way price-gouge (or otherwise, affiliated with “baby-boomers”). Rather than sit around and discuss wine-o-metrics, Millennials want a story.  And Fricks is keenly aware of this fact, which is why the Sassy Bitch wine label is provocative and offers a sassy catch phrase, or concept, to set the narrative.  After all, Fricks believes that wine is best when enjoyed among friends, when making memories. 

Sure, it’s easy to get lost in making an arbitrarily “good wine,” or to try and scale up through the archaic point system.  But ultimately, wine is a product and not all wine-drinkers are the same. 

Fricks admits that Sassy Bitch wine is not aimed at a guy’s night watching the game.  But she firmly advocates that when you have only seconds to convince a shopper that your product is right for their occasion, specificity beats generality and the Sassy Bitch label catches your eye. Cute, coined phrases on the back of the label start the narrative and voila – another bottle sold.

So while many of her older competitors in the male-dominated business push back against Millennials and continue their efforts to make 90-point vintages, Fricks is helping her target audience enjoy the narrative of female empowerment and fun with a great-tasting wine at an affordable price. She stays true to her vision, that wine is best enjoyed among friends, telling stories and making memories.

The lessons of Sassy Bitch wine disrupting the industry are potent for any entrepreneur – especially those targeting Millennial customers.


 

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