By Laurie Wachter
Steve Myers radiates inventive power in a manner any artist would acknowledge. It’s an power that connects disparate concepts and turns them into tangible options; that sees paths to future outcomes the place others see solely obstacles; that acknowledges potential expertise in open-minded curiosity; and that understands ardour is crucial to success.
Myers began as a strategic administration guide, moved to Allied Domecq, Beam Wine Estates and Duckhorn Wine Firm earlier than turning into president of Distinguished Vineyards, the place the portfolio he’s constructing now contains MacRostie, Argyle, Markham and Textbook.
“It’s been a journey,” Myers says. “What introduced me into the business is wine’s intersection between individuals obsessed with their craft and the enterprise of constructing a model and connecting with shoppers. It nonetheless excites me 20 years later.”
Beneath Myers’ management, Distinguished Vineyards has invested in new channels, enhanced buyer experiences and bought wineries — all whereas reaching constant double-digit development. However what actually units Myers aside is his concentrate on positively impacting the individuals round him.
Turning the tables
Kimberlee Nicholls was well-established because the winemaker at Markham Vineyards when Myers arrived. “His coming in and seeing the place we wanted to go as a model was very constructive, for me personally and for the model,” she says. “His laser-intense concentrate on bettering the winemaking course of is each winemaker’s dream. My management staff additionally modified; we are actually 5 ladies.” As for the longer term, Nicholls merely desires “to be a winemaker and go to a wine tasting with my husband with out individuals assuming he made the wine.”
With this succinct assertion, she places her finger on an exasperating profession expertise for just about each lady in winemaking (and past). After the Me Too motion’s highlight on the wine business, Myers realized that range, fairness and inclusivity had a protracted option to go. He requested his senior ladies what adjustments have been wanted and attended the Girls of the Vine & Spirits World Symposium. Whereas there, he skilled one other widespread incidence for profession ladies — however in reverse — being certainly one of solely 20 males amongst 800 ladies at a convention.
“That had such a profound influence on me,” he says. “I left understanding {that a} balanced staff of women and men is nice, but when all of your leaders are males, it’s superficial. What issues is that whenever you search for and see who’s talking or who the leaders are, you see your self. So at present, we’ve a 50/50 gender stability throughout the enterprise and on the administration degree, with 46% of our managers, together with three of 5 head winemakers, being ladies. The standard of discussions, choices and outcomes are so significantly better when you will have populations numerous in age, gender and expertise.“
Heidi Bridenhagen had been an enologist at MacRostie Vineyard for 2 years when she assumed the previous head winemaker’s day-to-day duties whereas Myers looked for a substitute.
“He noticed my ardour when he met with me and requested me how I noticed myself within the subsequent 5 years,” she says. “I used to be younger, so I noticed assistant winemaker as my subsequent step. Then he supplied me the job of head winemaker! I didn’t even know I used to be in a job interview.” That was in 2013, and in 2022, Myers promoted Bridenhagen to director of winemaking for all Distinguished Vineyards wineries.
“It’s an enormous development alternative,” she notes. “[Steve] helps females and doesn’t assume these higher-level roles must be males. That’s essential in an excellent chief. However much more essential is that he’s not selling us as a result of we’re ladies, however as a result of he sees our expertise and needs us in management positions.”
Reaching past wine
Myers extends his constructive influence past the Distinguished Vineyards household by integrating nonprofits that assist causes related to its wines, groups and shoppers.
James Beard Basis President & COO Kris Moon relates how Distinguished Vineyards’ assist of the Affect and Good Catch packages, which promote a sustainable ecosystem for meals and beverage, snowballed after Myers advised him, “I feel we’ve a possibility to construct a brand new wine model that will generate funding for the inspiration.” Myers’ imaginative and prescient turned Dough Wines, a sustainable wine designed by Bridenhagen and to be offered at eating places that assist the sustainable seafood ecosystem. The 25,000-case model now contributes greater than $100,000 to-date to assist restaurant restoration, kitchen equality, sustainability and culinary scholarships.
One other partnership started when Myers noticed Joanna James communicate at a Harvest Summit on her documentary in regards to the underrepresentation of girls within the culinary business. James requested him to assist the nationwide distribution of her movie, A High quality Line. For Myers, it was a simple sure.
Distinguished Vineyards additionally sponsors James’ 501(c)(3), MAPP, which advocates for ladies in hospitality, and its annual convention. She says of Myers, “He’s a visionary, all the time interested by the larger image and the way he and the corporate could make a distinction. I attribute every little thing we’ve accomplished over 5 years to him. I name everybody on his staff a buddy; they care about the right way to make [things] higher.” She believes Myers instills these values by creating an setting the place sharing concepts is comfy.
“After I began at Distinguished Vineyards in 2010, I didn’t need to discuss case manufacturing,” Myers says. “As a substitute, I needed to debate creating social worth for the manufacturers and utilizing development to spend money on the individuals, wine high quality and our communities.”
He’s achieved his aim of constructing a financially profitable wine firm that’s a constructive agent of change and can undoubtedly proceed to take action into the longer term.
______________________________________________________________________
Laurie Wachter
Laurie Wachter brings her experience in shopper conduct, meals & beverage advertising and direct-to-consumer gross sales to writing about innovation and challenges within the shopper packaged items business. She works with a world consumer base from her Northern California Wine Nation house.
_______________________________________________________________________
About Wine’s Most Inspiring Folks: Annually, Wine Business Advisor chooses 10 people from throughout the wine business who showcase management, innovation and inspiration. For the primary time in 2021, WIA opened submissions to the business at massive, and the success of this new nomination course of was shortly acknowledged, as honorees got here from extra numerous wine areas and had extra distinct tales to inform. With greater than 100 nominees in 2022, the editorial staff chosen the highest 10 people who, they felt, had actually positively impacted the U.S. wine tradition over the previous yr.
