Capital gains – the return of the London Wine Fair

This year’s London Wine Fair promises a joyous return to the capital on 7-9 June after a three-year hiatus. Fresh from celebrating the Queen’s platinum jubilee, the capital’s wine world will be pitched into a three-day reunion of tasting and trading as the London Wine Fair celebrates its fortieth anniversary.

According to the fair’s organiser, Hannah Tovey, the 2022 show is packed with content and exhibitors, not only during the three days at Olympia but also through its two-day digital followup, which will take place two weeks later on 20-21 June. So what’s in store for the physical show at Olympia?

One of the most notable things of this year ’s fair is the number of regional and country-specific bodies that are attending, Tovey says, with more than 30 wine-producing countries represented.

Some of the industry’s biggest regions will be returning to the show, including Wine Australia – which has not shown at the LWF for over a decade but is bringing 24 producers that are all new to the UK. In addition, producers from Pro Chile, Georgia and France have also upped their presence – Georgia has exhibited twice before, but this year will be doubling the size of its stand, while the area dedicated to French growers has increased by almost 50%.

“The French area has been strong but static in previous years, but this year we have noticed a real growth, so much so that we have had to add another island site to the French pavilion,” Tovey says, detailing the developments.

She attributes this to a combination of pent-up demand for a physical wine show, as well as French government assistance to help producers exhibit outside of mainland Europe.

The team is also excited that the annual Bourgogne and Chablis tasting will be coming to the fair on its first day (Tuesday 7 June). Around 40 wine producers and food stalls will bring the vibes of a French pop-up marketplace and tasting venue – to the entire west side of the Gallery and adjoining Gallery Suite rooms. “It is a really big ‘show within a show’ for Bourgogne, which we’re thrilled about,” Tovey says.

Distell, South Africa’s leading producer of wines, spirits and ciders, will also return after a long absence, while Argentina’s leading organic winery, Domaine Bousquet, will be taking a stand for the first time.

NEW EXHIBITORS

But it’s not just about returning exhibitors. This year Murcia & Galicia from Spain, and the Portuguese Península de Setúbal region – with more than a dozen producers that are new to the UK – will be exhibiting at the show for the first time. New exhibitors Armenia, Uzbekistan and Romania are also likely to generate interest.

Excitement has also been building for the Drinks Britannia zone. “We know that British producers are highly popular – ‘British products’ comes in at about number five in all the searches of LWF exhibitors’ lists, so we’ve given that priority again,” Tovey explains.

WineGB will once again be supporting the fair, “bringing in as many producers as they can under their umbrella”, while the Nyetimber Routemaster bus will bowl into Olympia again, to host a series of masterclasses. “They have gone bigger, and are taking a big island site in the hall this year, which will include a lovely Nyetimber hospitality garden,” Tovey adds.

FOOD AND DRINK

Meanwhile, the popular Food and Drink Wales stand – which is “usually mobbed” also returns, and James Martin Gin is exhibiting for the first time.

Many of the UK’s best-known importers and distributors will be present. Enotria&Coe will be running masterclasses on 12 of their most premium producers, and Hatch Mansfield is dialling up its presence, with the launch of two premium agencies on their stand.

UK agents Awin Barratt Siegel, Richmond Wine Agencies and Félix Solís, will return to the Trading Floor.

Other popular elements of the show are already almost fully booked – including Esoterica, for specialist importers, and Wines Unearthed, which showcases ‘new to the UK’ producers.

This year will see a new No and Low Zone, a discovery space for no-and low-alcohol brands that has been curated by mindful drinking movement Club Soda. Tapping into the rising trends in non-alcoholic products, including alcohol free wine, sparkling tea, shrub-style drinks and no-and lowalcohol spirits, it will host a panel discussion from on-trade operators that have integrated low and no into their offerings. There will also be a fireside chat between Club Soda’s co-founder, Laura Willoughby MBE, Christine Parkinson of Brimful Drinks (and former group head of wine for Hakkasan), and wine consultant Harry Crowther.

Tovey says that the new No & Low Zone was due to have been launched at the cancelled 2020 event, when the category was just starting to build momentum. “Two years on, and no-and low has become a significant category in the drinks aisles and on drinks lists, with Covid cited as a catalyst to its success. We expect this to be one of the busiest areas of the show, with visitors looking to explore new launches and opportunities to incorporate no-and low drinks in their businesses.”

According to Tovey, the partnership with a 24/7 channel devoted to all things wine was a no-brainer. “They have an extraordinary output of content so it’s a win-win situation,” she said. “We’re very happy to see traditional wine media spreading into new media.”

The result of the strong exhibitors list opens up opportunities for discovery and education, Tovey says, making it “the strongest in many years. Our strapline for this year is ’the most intelligent wine event of its kind’ – and I want that to come across.”

CRITICAL CONTENT

This project supplements the Education Zone (supported by the WSET) which Tovey describes as “absolutely critical content” for the show, giving industry starters and those in their first or second jobs the tools to understand how the industry works, and what roles they might move into.

The theme continues in the Masterclass programme, which operates first-come, first-seated walk-in sessions, as well as premium masterclasses in the Pillar Hall that can be reserved in advance.

Meanwhile, the industry briefing room will be back to highlight the most important issues facing the sector, with key-note speakers and panel sessions, supported by the WSTA.

“It is critical for futureproofing the industry – you need to be in there if you want to know about the key things that are affecting how we buy and sell, and how wines get moved around – trade, essentially,” Tovey explains.

Finally, the Discovery zone will be returning – this is an indispensable area for products and services that the wine industry can’t do without, which is being sponsored by French wine-preservation system D’Vine, as it launches in the UK. This area covers everything from wine technology to transportation and marketing, and is centred in the theatre, where up to five sessions a day will be held. “We’ve got a session on how to be better at e-commerce, which is an angle a lot of people are pursuing, and how to be more sustainable as a company –a hot topic that keeps the industry informed and moving forwards,” she says.

DIGITAL EVENT

And if that isn’t enough to whet your appetite for this year ’s show, the physical fair is being followed up by a two-day digital event on 20-21 June.

“The rationale is that you can’t see everything at the London Wine Fair, even if you come to all three days, so we want to have some edited contents and snippets of what went on, even for those that came,” Tovey explains.

However, 60% of these contents will be entirely new for the digital event – as Tovey explains, the team has targeted its visitor demographics with content that will be the most relevant to them.

This includes seminar sessions and live panel sessions, so the visitors can watch and join in through a chat box at the side of the screen. There will also be tastings running across the two days, with samples dispatched in advance. “By having 60% of the content fresh, we know that even if you did attend everything, there will be plenty of rationale for you to attend the two days in full,” Tovey explains.

All the exhibitors and visitors will have a profile from the time they log in, and the system’s powerful algorithm will start suggesting suitable matches of companies that can connect with each other via the platform, either via texts or a video meeting. Because this starts before the digital event, exhibitors and visitors alike can plan their diaries in advance.

With more than 80 sessions on site and 20 digital ones, hundreds of exhibitors, platforms, suppliers and staff to manage, Tovey admits that this fair has been “possibly the most complicated thing I’ve ever managed in my life” – not least as it had to be rearranged on a different date at short notice, and with an almost entirely new team.

There was, however a tremendous sense of goodwill from exhibitors and suppliers. Despite rearranging after the date clashed with ProWein, Tovey lost out on only two exhibitors, “who were distraught they couldn’t do the new dates”.

“Most people were incredibly committed to changing dates. It might have caused them difficulties, but they took that on, and were keen to stay with us. So we can’t thank our exhibitors enough for that. Olympia created a date that didn’t exist before, specifically for us, and most of our suppliers also bent over backwards to make it happen, so it really was a heartwarming experience in terms of support.”

“When I look at the floor plan, the content, and the incredible list of media partners and partners to the event, all I can think is that this is an amazing opportunity to be able to come into one space in one day or three to have access to all of this is one room,” she says.

“There isn’t anything else like this in the UK in one space, over five days, if you count the online. It’s an incredible opportunity to come in, trade, learn, trade and grow, and an incredible city to do it in.”