Key GB Wine Industry Events for 2018 also announced

Monday 12th February: Wines of Great Britain (WineGB) has unveiled its new branding to support the UK wine industry’s new name and identity, along with an announcement of its activities in 2018.

Extensive design work was undertaken to create a branding, style and logo to reflect the authority and leadership of the industry body that represents the growers and producers of Great Britain.

The ‘roundel’ is styled to be easily recognisable and incorporates the key elements of the industry, featuring grapes and wines through illustration and wording, together with the prominent use of the union flag which also highlights the growing international reputation for its wines. Whilst the primary branding is on a distinctive dark blue background it will also appear on a white background as well as in mono. A rebranding of the industry’s competition (now named WineGB Awards) and English Wine Week/Welsh Wine Week will follow shortly.

WineGB’s marketing director Julia Trustram Eve commented: “We are proud and delighted to launch our new branding. It was important to us to have a device that is memorable and recognisable, authoritative and adaptable. We wanted the branding to be contemporary and stylish, to reflect the quality and heritage as well as the exciting future of our industry and its wines, and with this design we have it.”

WineGB worked with Tom Clarke of design agency Irving & Nichols to produce the logo and branding. “We knew that the overall style should not look like a creative drinks brand, but rather carry the air of government authority about it, whilst reflecting the elegance and quality of English and Welsh wines,” commented Tom. “It was also important that the device should not encroach on an individual wine brand or bottle design but to be entirely complimentary.”

WineGB’s branding and name will be widely communicated through its marketing materials and devices over the coming months – from social media handles to the soon to be launched website.

Planned Activities for WineGB in 2018 – dates for the diary

Wines of Great Britain events this year will highlight the new initiatives and projects now underway since becoming a unified industry body. Key events include:

Wines of Great Britain AGM and Members’ Conference – Wednesday 25th April, Vintners’ Hall

The Annual General Meeting of the Membership of WineGB will be followed by an afternoon of talks and seminars covering a range of topics of wide-reaching interest. Talks from experts in their field and industry leaders will include wine tourism, training and education. Tickets to the afternoon sessions are open to trade as well as industry members and will be on sale in the near future.

Wines of Great Britain Trade & Press Tasting – Thursday 26th April, RHS Lindley Hall, London SW1

The industry’s trade and press tasting is moving to a new and larger venue in RHS Lindley Hall to accommodate the growing number producers now taking part.

This year a series of seminars and panel discussions will be taking place during the tasting; these will include the launch of some of the initiatives now underway by Wines of Great Britain by WineGB’s CEO, David Parkinson, and Chairman Simon Robinson. This will include the announcement of much-anticipated figures outlining the current position of the UK wine industry and its forecast for future growth, following an industry-wide survey being conducted in conjunction with Wine Intelligence. Another session will include a debate on the opportunities that Brexit will bring to the GB wine industry. The themes and detail of the other seminars will be announced in due course.

English Wine Week and Welsh Wine Week – Saturday 26th May – Sunday 3rd June

Last year’s English Wine Week campaign saw the highest ever uptake of trade participants, as well as record-breaking social media coverage. Plans are already underway for this popular campaign in 2018, which will take place, as before, over the last week in May, incorporating the May Bank Holiday. This year there will also be a focus on the vineyards themselves, encouraging consumers to get to know them better.

“The trade plays a key part in introducing English and Welsh wines to their customers, inviting them to discover just what is being produced on the doorstep,” explains Julia. “We love working with an ever-enthusiastic trade and supporting all that they do, and helping to provide opportunities to highlight the wonderful wines and vineyards in the UK.”

Look out also for WineGB at some of the other key trade activities during the year – more will be highlighted when plans are confirmed.

ENDS

For interviews or further quotes please contact Julia Trustram Eve on tel: 01858 467792, or email julia@winegb.co.uk

A full set of brand guidelines will be available from WineGB in the near future, outlining the full details and permissible use of the branding across all media. Vectorised versions of the logo and branding are also available.

The following social media handles are now in operation:
Twitter: @wine_gb
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WineGB/
Instagram: winegb

Details of the WineGB Trade Tasting and how to apply to attend can be found on http://www.englishwineproducers.co.uk/trade/ewp-trade-and-press-tasting/ temporarily until the Wines of Great Britain website is launched.

Wines of Great Britain follows the formal merger on 1st September of the two industry bodies: United Kingdom Vineyards Association (UKVA) and English Wine Producers (EWP).