Issue link: http://winesandvines.uberflip.com/i/437909
January 2015 Wines&Vines 117 SaleS & marketing continues to be a very dominant No. 1 with a 42% market share). Why Hong Kong? Duty-free imports, excellent handling and storage facilities, an English heritage that feels comfortable to North Americans, and regulatory systems that inspire confidence are all reasons wineries looking at exporting to China and elsewhere in Asia first look at Hong Kong. The Hong Kong International Wine & Spirits Fair first started in 2008 with a couple hundred exhibitors and a definite tilt toward European wineries. But the fair, which despite having "spirits" in its title is overwhelmingly wine- oriented, has grown to include more than 1,000 exhibitors from 38 countries and draws more than 20,000 wine buyers. In his opening remarks, Hong Kong finan- cial secretary John-Tsang Chun-wah pointed out that "mainland China consumers simply trust the wine coming in from Hong Kong" and added that customs agreements signed in late 2013 will ensure international wine shipments sent via Hong Kong to the mainland reach consumers more quickly. But the big attraction of the Hong Kong International Wine & Spirits Fair is the ability to meet distributors. Everett de Jong of Pelee Island Winery has been coming to the fair since its inception and found his distributor, Kenneth Chu of Hong Kong-based MBA Global Manage- ment, at the show. Everett said MBA has "made a huge difference" in Pelee Island's efforts in China, and he strongly advised wineries look- ing to move into Asia to "use Hong Kong as your hub." Everett added that westerners should ex- pect to make some mistakes while they get their footing in the Far East. One frequent error is to give a distributor the exclusive rights to all of China. Most distributors specialize in fairly narrow regions, so he suggested bringing a map and only agreeing to a tightly defined territory. Everett also advised, "Get your price points right and follow up." Coming to Hong Kong with government dollars Most U.S. wineries exhibiting at the Hong Kong International Wine & Spirits Fair do so as part of organized pavilions—groups representing California, Oregon and Washington, North Carolina and New York were all at the show. Wine professionals discuss sales opportunities in mainland China during the Wine & Spirits Fair. S U P P O R T R E S E A R C H & W I N E I N D U S T R Y N E E D S T H R O U G H T H E AMERICAN VINEYARD FOUNDATION AMERICAN VINEYARD FOUNDATION Finding Solutions Through Research P.O. Box 5779, Napa, CA., 94581 • T: (707) 252-6911 • Visit our web site at www.avf.org for information on funding and current research projects For a wealth of useful viticulture and enology research and information, visit AVF.org, ngwi.org, ngr.ucdavis.org, asev.org, or iv.ucdavis.edu For a wealth of useful viticulture and enology research and information, visit AVF.org, ngwi.org, ngr.ucdavis.org, asev.org, or iv.ucdavis.edu