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Fells looks to future as it restructures commercial team
UK wine distributor Fells has restructured its commercial team to support its growth goals over the next year and position it to navigate market challenges, it has announced.
The strategic changes to its commercial team include several promotions and key additions, which will help it navigate the current challenges in the market
It has promoted Richard Brockett, who has been with Fells for eight years, to sales director, with overall responsibility for the company’s sales operations. Meanwhile, Alastair Bennett becomes commercial development director, in charge of shaping Fells’ commercial strategy and further expanding its portfolio. Stefan Neumann MS will also expand his role to develop the company’s premium wine selection, with continued emphasis on quality and innovation.
Paul Burden, who joined Fells in 2016, takes on a broader role of strategic planning director, aiming to deliver enhanced analysis on market trends and categories that will support the company’s commercial decision-making process.
Meanwhile, the national retail team has been strengthened with the addition Anastasia Duncanson as senior national account manager, while Charlotte Haylett and Tairi Tillo join the London on-trade division to drive growth in this key sector.
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Fells’ managing director Euan Mackay said the changes would ensure “that we have both the right people and the right structure in place to navigate ongoing market challenges while continuing to deliver exceptional value to our customers and our suppliers.”
Following his appointment last year, Mackay told db that the trading environment in the UK was “far from easy” and that costs for importers had increased – transport costs had more than trebled on certain routes for example. However, he said he remained hopeful that “consumer confidence” would pick up in 2025 and that “agility” as well as the ability “to add value” both on the customer and supplier side was the key to securing a successful future in the UK.
Despite the challenges in 2023, which saw more cautious consumer spending on the back of higher interest rates, increased energy bills and higher food costs, as well as uncertainty surrounding the phased introduction of the government’s new duty rates, the company saw its revenue grow by 4% to £80.5m in the year to 31 December 2013, according to accounts filed at Companies House in September. Although net trading profit fell by 25% to £1.65m, the directors said they were satisfied with the results.
Last year the company launched Fells Vinothèque, an initiative dedicated to releasing mature vintages from producers from whom the company is typically unable to source older stocks, in order to deliver a new, relevant service to the on-trade. As part of this, it has laid down a significant number of cases, comprising more than 70 wines from 30 wineries, to mature. These will be released in a two-year rolling schedule of quarterly releases, it told db at the time.
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