Australia to launch a multi-million-dollar push to boost wine market share in China
AUSTRALIA will today launch a multi-million-dollar push to try and boost its market share in the booming Chinese wine market.
The industry expects the Chinese market to become its biggest customer by 2015.
It is hoped the move will capitalise on the already strong success of Australian wines in China. Local vintners have seized 20 per cent of the market for imported wine, second only to France, and sales are being led by traditionally strong brands such as Penfolds and Jacobs Creek.
The industry market body Wine Australia, also known as the Australian Wine and Brandy Corporation, will unveil its offshore brand "A+" at Australia' s Shanghai Expo pavilion this evening.
Ten local winemakers will show off their best drops at a gala dinner and after that they will visit Beijing and the southern metropolis Guangzhou. As part of the program, Wine Australia is setting up offices in Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong.
Start of sidebar. Skip to end of sidebar.
Related Coverage
Taylors Wines continues to woo Chinese Adelaide Now, 1 day ago
Chinese eye wine assets of Foster's The Australian, 6 days ago
SA eyes Chinese wine market Adelaide Now, 8 days ago
Foster's calls last drinks The Australian, 26 May 2010
Beijing wants taste of Australian wine Perth Now, 13 Jan 2010
End of sidebar. Return to start of sidebar.
Wine Australia's communications and marketing chief Lucy Anderson will shift to Hong Kong to head the Asian section of the group, but given China's importance as a future market and Hong Kong's small size, many industry insiders believe the job would be better based in Shanghai or Beijing.
Australian wine exports to China are expected to grow up to 50 per cent this year and will be worth as much as $200 million.
The new marketing push is aimed at positioning Australia as a producer of high-quality wines rather than cheap quaffing plonk.
"The strategy will be based on regionality and fine wine and is aimed at repositioning Australian wine in terms of price image and reputation," Wine Australia marketing chief Paul Henry told The Australian.
"Together with the recent Brand Australia launch (by Austrade) we are saying Australia is no longer being the quiet achiever, Australia is a country of outstanding wines." China is Australia fourth biggest and fastest growing wine market after the US, Britain and Canada.
"We have developed marketing programs that are aimed at the local China market and will spending a couple of million dollars.
"We will be flying out Chinese media to Australia and will have a six-month education phase where we train Australian wine advocates," Mr Henry said.
"The big competition is France and the biggest challenge is our ability as a country to back the idea of a brand wine.
"There will be series of meetings and workshops with the local importing community, and a full online Australian wine interactive syllabus and one-day wine schools using locals to deliver it."
Mr Henry thinks Australia is ahead of the competition, which is starting to emerge from other countries such as Chile, Argentina and South Africa.
The Chinese wine market is already peppered with Australians and Australian-run businesses, ranging from emerging distributor The Wine Republic, owned by the Rathbone family which controls chemicals and agribusiness group Nufarm, to a number of distributors, including major player Aussino, and retailers owned by Chinese-born Australians.
Australian Christina Twelftree, who recently quit as an executive at one of China's largest internet groups Alibaba, has set up a bilingual review website.
"China is a huge opportunity," Ms Twelftree said.
"Our aim is to provide simple, independent review free of industry jargon, and questions and answers from a panel of experts, including renowned industry figure James Halliday."