A commitment to women’s leadership in the wine industry
Santa Rosa, CA. March 22, 2016. In recognition of Women’s History Month, Vintage Wine Estates announces the creation of a $5000 scholarship to support women’s leadership in the wine industry. The scholarship will be awarded to a woman pursuing a Professional Wine Master of Business Administration degree at Sonoma State University.
“Vintage Wine Estates is committed to a diversified team, with women in key leadership positions. It seemed appropriate to celebrate the historic contributions of women by lending our support to a female leader of tomorrow.” said Pat Roney, President/CEO of Vintage Wine Estates.
Vintage Wine Estates is a champion of women’s leadership in the wine industry, with numerous women at the Director level and above. Six out of the 10 members of the Senior Leadership team are women, including Terry Wheatley, Executive Vice-President, Sales & Marketing, Karen Diepholz, Chief Financial Officer, Marketing Vice-Presidents Lesley Larson and Vice President of DTC, Stephanie Peachey (Peachey received her Professional Wine MBA at Sonoma State), Vice-President, Information Technology, Karla Reed and Vice-President Finance Michell Ruggirello. Winemakers Nancy Walker, Premium Wines, and Amy Ludovissy, Viansa Sonoma provide leadership on the production side.
“Several recent studies have found that companies with more female leaders are more productive and profitable” explained Roney. “Gender parity in business is not only about fairness—it’s about results.”
About Vintage Wine Estates
Vintage Wine Estates is a privately held wine company owned by a group of vintner families with deep roots in the wine business. The families own a collection of winery estates and brands which includes Girard Winery, Clos Pegase Winery, Swanson Vineyards, B.R. Cohn Winery, Cosentino Winery, Sonoma Coast Vineyards, Cartlidge & Browne, Middle Sister, Girl & Dragon, Purple Cowboy and a number of exclusive wine brands. An industry leader across all sales channels, the company respects the way people buy wine—in the tasting room, at retail stores and in restaurants, on the telephone, on television, on the Internet and by mail. Vintage Wine Estates is dedicated to providing wine consumers with a range of wines from $10 to $100 dollars and at many price points in between from Napa, Sonoma, Mendocino and other premium California winegrowing regions. www.vintagewineestates.com
