Will Coterie’s strategic hires make it a ‘leading force’ in wine?

Coterie Holdings’ series of appointments over the past few months are due to strengthen the group’s business. db looks into its latest moves.

The recruitment drive, which began in September, saw the business first appoint drinks industry veteran Michael Saunders as its CEO, a role he was destined to take up from 1 January 2024.

Saunders had joined Bibendum in 1983, leaving 33 years later as CEO, only to rejoin in 2018 when C&C acquired the drinks suppliers. In 2019, he was named as the chairman of the Wine & Spirit Trade Association (WSTA). He also served as chairman of industry charity The Benevolent, which was renamed as The Drinks Trust in 2020. However, upon announcing his departure from C&C and his plan to join Coterie Holdings as CEO from the new year, the group took on a strong position.

Before the year ended and even prior to Saunders’ official start date, another shake up occurred when Coterie Holdings bought Hallgarten & Novum Wines in a move that put Saunders squarely at the helm of the business.

Since then, Coterie Holdings has also revealed it is to welcome Andrew Shaw as wine director for the business from 1 March to help define and implement a buying and sourcing strategy and work with the group’s wine buyers to build on Lay & Wheeler and Hallgarten & Novum Wines portfolio.

Shaw, who was known most recently as head of trading – drinks at Marks & Spencer, had also previously spent nine years as buying director at Bibendum and prior to that had been head of wine at Waitrose for five years. Notably, his path had crossed with Saunders over many years.

Speaking about his new role this week, Shaw admitted he was “relishing the opportunity to work with so many great people across the Coterie group, the eclectic customer base, and world-renowned suppliers within such an innovative and forward-thinking model”.

Similarly, Saunders bolstered Shaw being brought onto the team and said: “Having worked with Andrew over a number of years, I know the unique skills and qualities he will bring in collaborating with our teams across Coterie. This is another clear signpost of Coterie’s ambition to become a leading force in the premium wine business.”

Additionally, this week, Coterie has also revealed the appointment of James Scott as chief data officer as it targets sustainable growth across the group.

Scott joins the business having most recently been managing director of Proof, the insight, analytics and research business he built for C&C Group where he has worked for the past 16 years. In many ways, Scott’s and Shaw’s appointment have been levelled as strategic moves, bringing together a team that operates at the top of its game.

Describing joining Coterie, Scott admitted: “I am delighted to join forces with Michael once again and become part of a very exciting growing business in Coterie Holdings, working closely with the well-respected businesses that form the group. It is incredibly important that we understand everything going on within our business to provide the best possible service to our customers, ensuring we get it right for them every time.”

Saunders also waxed lyrical about the appointment and added: “James’ appointment makes a lot of sense for Coterie. Getting our data structures in place from an early stage will not only make the group more robust and efficient but will also allow us to use the power of data and insight to get sustainable competitive advantage.”

Hallgarten & Novum Wines was recently named Drinks Company of the Year at The Drinks Business Awards 2023.

Despite extremely stiff competition, the company was applauded for its growth, wine range, ethos, eco-credentials, staff and was declared a beacon as a profitable, ethical and environmentally-minded business.

In 2022, Hallgarten & Novum Wines initiated a major project – the ‘Hallgarten Eco Standard’ – to analyse the sustainability of its suppliers. Measuring against four categories with 41 criteria, each with weighted scoring, the standard is now incorporated into Hallgarten’s list, as well as being shared with the wider trade. Besides this Hallgarten has strengthened its portfolio, with a list of 1,200 wines from 192 producers in 24 countries. Plus, over the past year, the company added 220 new wines including La Rioja Alta, while boosting its social media following by 17% across all platforms. As such, it is on course to become Corporate Carbon Neutral this year.

On 19-20 February, the group will host its Hallgarten Wines Annual Tasting for the trade at the Royal Horticultural Halls in London where Saunders, along with Hallgarten Wines managing director Andrew Bewes, will share their thoughts on what the future holds for both businesses and the wine industry as a whole.