Each year the Silicon Valley Bank conducts an aspirational State of the Wine Industry report, presenting headwinds and opportunities for our sector. Though heavily weighted towards the west coast, lessons learned and recommendations for future opportunities can benefit the New York industry. Wineries are an important economic engine, as the panel will discuss, and should continually assess our progress and demonstrate our impact to the community. Join us to discuss the state of the industry nationwide, New York wineries’ impact on the state’s economy, and how we can better track our own data in the future.
Jim Trezise, President, WineAmerica
Jim Trezise is President of WineAmerica, the National Association of American Wineries based in Washington, DC. WineAmerica has more than 500 winery members and associations from 40 states, and focuses on national grassroots public policy advocacy to protect and enhance the business climate for the American wine industry.
Jim was on WineAmerica’s Executive Committee for more than 25 years before becoming President in 2017. He also co-created and ran the New York Wine & Grape Foundation for 32 years, as well as the International Riesling Foundation for 10 years concurrently. He serves on many industry broads, judges in major wine competitions, and has received numerous awards for his contributions to the American wine industry.
Dale Stratton, President, Wine Market Council
Dale Stratton brings almost 40 years of experience in the Beverage Alcohol Industry to his role as an industry consultant. Dale retired from Constellation Brands in May of 2019 where he was the Vice President, Commercial Insights working across their Beer, Wine, and Spirits divisions. While at Constellation Brands he oversaw consumer and shopper insights, consumer affairs, business analytics, market research, category management initiatives, and established their wine sensory program. Dale’s extensive work linking consumer, shopper, and market analysis with business objectives and strategies enable him to translate insights into revenue generating actions.
Dale is currently President of the Wine Market Council, Managing Director for Azur Associates, and works with the Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America’s on their SipSource deliverable.
Prior to joining Constellation Brands in 2006, Dale spent 22 years working at E&J Gallo where he began his career. During his tenure, he covered a wide range of responsibilities that included distributor management, account management, strategic insights, and Lean Six Sigma. Dale has a bachelor’s degree in Journalism with a concentration in Public Relations from Colorado State University and an Executive MBA from Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College.