[Food Tech] 35 wine start-ups unite around WineTech

February 06, 2020

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The "tech" labels continue to be emulated. Here is the latest, called "WineTech", and intended as its name suggests to formally structure innovation in the wine sector. In association form, this new structure will be chaired by Laurent David, former director of Apple Europe, winemaker and entrepreneur.

Claiming to be the first ecosystem of French wine innovation start-ups, this association "intends to conquer new investors and open up new markets with very high potential"explains the press release. In other words, accelerate the development of young nuggets who embody the digitalization of the sector with solutions proven in the field, such as Matcha or Le Petit Ballon.

Digitize the sector

Born from a handful of young entrepreneurs, WineTech brings together 35 French start-ups and aims to bring the ecosystem together around technological innovations, smart solutions and new consumer uses. "WineTech's mission is to enhance the entire value chain of the wine sector, and sends a strong signal to future investors", continues the new entity.

It intends to rely on artificial intelligence technologies, such as image recognition or recommendation engines, but also new trends and practices such as collaborative consumption, marketplaces and wine tourism. Another trend identified as promising is blockchain.

Two axes will be privileged: B2C via the development of merchant sites and applications "for a practical and educational approach to the wine world, and to promote access for the greatest number to small producers"; B2B thanks to platforms and software offering the centralization of product catalogs, the assistance of commercial management and the linking of skills, ie"solutions to facilitate the daily life of wine professionals".

 The list of start-ups

Bottlebooks, Vin.co, Baqio, Wine Funding, Wizifarm, Dealwine, Le chant des caves, Le Petit Ballon, Les Grappes, Les Petites Caves, Oé, Trocwine, Plugwine, Trois fois vin, Twil, Abacchus, Private cuvée, Matcha wine , Serjee, Vinoteam, Winalist, Ar wine labels, Aveine, Caveasy, Cellier Domesticus, Crystalchain, In my bottle, Digby, Fermynt, Gusto, Mywah, Smartbottle, Vinovae, Wikeeps and Winesitting.

Seeking funds of at least 20 million euros

In an increasingly competitive global market, these start-ups want to "revitalize the sector and reconnect with consumers"… and weigh in on a rapidly changing market, also marked by a surge in mass distribution (La Nouvelle Cave com Casino and Cdiscount, but also the acquisition in 2018 of WineAdvizor by Leclerc) and specialized brands (Nicolas, for example launched a digital transformation plan in 2019).

France is the world's leading exporter (by value) of wine and the world's second largest producer (by volume) *. "Wine is the second largest export sector in France, behind aeronautics and ahead of perfumes and cosmetics", remind start-ups. Opportunities they do not want to miss."By formalizing La WineTech, we want to make this movement more institutional, more visible and therefore recognized at its true value., adds Laurent David. We can now claim the place of the leading ecosystem of French start-ups in wine innovation, and this will allow all of our start-ups to be better identified, especially internationally. Like a label, WineTech wants to be an additional legitimacy for entrepreneurs, and a guarantee of quality for future investors.".

These nuggets now hope to weigh in to market their solutions on a large scale. Claiming in 4 years the creation of more than 300 jobs, they aim in 2021 the bar of 100 million euros of cumulative turnover. They are now looking to lift "at least 20 million euros"to finance their development.

 * Source CNIV – 2018 key figures for viticulture in France – Source OIV 2018

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