That being said, I was curious about how much pushback the company is experiencing from customers (both venues & end-consumers) as well as glassware companies regarding the elimination of the "ritual" - i.e. a specific piece of glassware designed to better market and differentiate a specific beverage.
From my summer at AB InBev, I know that lots of brewers push glassware on bars in order to differentiate/make premium their product (e.g. Stella comes in the distinctive chalice). Thus, there is a lot of resistance towards universal glassware (which bars/venues would like) and actually a movement towards differentiation.
Given that for wine the glass is tailored to a category as opposed to a specific brand, I assume there is less pushback from producers re: a universal glass. Additionally, venues probably like to save the shelf space.
However, I can see retailers making a push to preserve differentiation (presumably glass makers make significantly more by consumer demand for multiple different products) and the average, uneducated consumer themselves (who feels that there is a need for different glassware) pushing back because they like the distinctive ritual (since for many wine is an occasion).
Is this the case and why Gabriel-glas has kept mostly to the educated, high-end segment? If so, do they have to focus on millennia's whose wine ritual habits haven't been formed yet or can they convince the boomers once they broaden their scope? I might be tempted to wait the boomers out, but convince them to buy the glass anyway as some kind of "turbo" glassware that can go alongside their current collection. But I'm not sure how I would target often price conscious millennials with that high a price point.
I concur that the "next generation" wine enthusiast and buyer is a prime target demo for GG for reasons you have outlined.
ReplyDeleteI also think this makes sense as the "millennial" generation tends to be more transient in terms of where we are living, and tend to live in smaller spaces. Having a few high-end wine glasses that you can use for all wines makes moving and living in small kitchens much easier.
ReplyDeleteYou make an interesting point on the fact that wine glasses are category oriented, however, I would also consider a scenario where wine producers start pushing their own glassware in order to strengthen their brand in a bar / restaurant setting.
ReplyDeleteThe Inniskillin case mentioned that the company entered the US pushing their wine to restaurants and providing a specifically developed ice-wine glass.
Restaurants would not be able to support personalized glasses for each wine producer, as it would non linearly increase glassware management complexity, but I would guess that some producers have tried / will try to push their own glasses for their wine, especially those trying to differentiate their product from general (if such a word can be used) still wine.