Steve Heimoff's post about wine labels today got me thinking of a video I recently watched on YouTube.
The focus of the video was wine labels created for so called 'chick' wines. But that is not what caught my attention.
It was the assertion that men usually ask for assistance in wine retail shops and women prefer to peruse the wines on their own and base their decision on wine labels, shelftalker notes or indeed their own favorites.
Based on my experience in the wine business, I think this is more true than false.
But I wonder why?
Is it like a woman walking into a car dealership by herself? Perhaps feeling a bit overwhelmed by the (still) mostly male sales staff looking to strut their wine knowledge?
If I owned a retail shop I would want to figure this out since women buy over 60% of wine ( they buy for themselves and the family).
When I was a wine distributor sales rep, I always provided shelftalker notes or press for the retailer to hang next to the wine.
This was specifically for the female customers ( including my own mother) who told me that they did not want sales assistance when shopping for wine.
I have noticed that this seems to pertain to women over 50 more than the younger women, who appear more comfortable with their wine knowledge and don't mind engaging the sales staff.
The comments posted on YouTube about this video surely add to the dilemma. The comments had a decidedly locker room feel.
Most were from men poking fun at women for buying the 'chick' labels.
Maybe this is part of the reason some women don't want to ask for help at the wine store?
Monday, October 20, 2008
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1 comment:
Generally, men and women think about and describe wine very differently. Men say things like, "93 points Parker, 50% Cab, 30% Syrah, 20% Mourvedre." Women say things like, "Sensuous. Silky. Flirtatious." And they could be describing the same wine! And they would both be right! I think some of the reason women don't ask for help in wine shops is because so many wine shops are run by men. The woman may not care of some bottle got 93 point Parker if she's just looking for something "sensuous" so she strikes out on her own. I agree, however, that women deserve more attention in wine shops.
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