2025 Summer Symposium: Retail Bootcamp
Join us for a day to tune up, tune in, and turn on our enthusiasm for getting Ontario wine into the hands of consumers. Featuring speakers’ sessions and an educational tasting, it’s a great opportunity for professional development and to network with fellow wine sales, retail, and marketing professionals from across Niagara and beyond.
When: Monday, June 9th, 2025 from 9 am to 12 pm
Where: Pond Inlet, Brock University
Cost: $135 (plus taxes and fees), includes parking, light breakfast, speakers sessions, and educational tasting
For who?: New, returning, and veteran retail staff at wineries and wine retail who sell Ontario wine. Also of interest to anyone involved in promoting Ontario wine (advertising, social media, wine writers, industry associations).
Speakers:
Britt Dixon
Britt Dixon is a social media manager, content creator, and coach. She works with businesses to help them grow and market their brands, share their stories, and build their communities using social media. Some of her clients include the Grape Growers of Ontario, Fielding Estate Winery, Pondview at Bella Terra Vineyards, the Cuvée Grand Tasting and Sue-Ann Staff Estate Winery.
Storytelling in Wine: Connecting People to Place, Passion, and Process
Wine lovers want more than just tasting notes, it’s time to transform the way we sell wine. This workshop dives into the art of storytelling as a powerful tool to create meaningful connections with customers. Learn how to share your winery’s unique story, highlight the passion of the people behind the wines, and showcase the journey from vine to glass. We’ll explore how evolving consumer expectations demand more than a tasting bar experience as well as discuss social media marketing tips. Whether you’re new to wine retail or a seasoned expert, this session will inspire you to craft narratives that resonate, engage, and ultimately sell more Ontario wine. Perfect for retail staff, marketers, and anyone passionate about promoting Ontario wine.
Katharina Radcliffe
Why Appellations Matter: Turning VQA Knowledge into Wine Retail Confidence
Learn to connect the dots between appellation knowledge and front-line retail impact by using VQA to connect with your customers. VQA tells your customer where the wine is from, how it was made, and why that matters. It helps move the conversation from “What does this taste like?” to “What does this wine mean?”
Educational Tasting
Telling the Story of Ontario Wines through wine flavour chemistry
Join Steven Trussler, CCOVI’s micro-credential coordinator and former winemaker, for a tasting designed to explore important flavour chemistry families like terpenes and esters. Many times, these flavours tell a story about where the wine was grown or how the wine was made. The story of Ontario wine comes alive when we move from telling consumers how the wine tastes to why the Ontario wine taste the way that it does.
