Founders Vida DeLong and Tiffany Kenny Work Alongside Winery Teams on Wine Clubs, CRM and Email, and Tasting-Room Strategy
November 2, 2026 (Napa Valley, CA) — As wineries navigate a prolonged industry downturn, direct-to-consumer sales and marketing have become one of the most important levers for protecting and generating revenue, yet the leadership talent needed to engage that lever is expensive.
Founded in 2024 by direct-to-consumer experts Vida DeLong and Tiffany Kenny, Hopscotch offers DTC consulting and fractional leadership for the wine industry. DeLong brings 30 years of luxury hospitality and direct sales experience, including senior DTC roles at Far Niente Wine Estates and Crimson Wine Group, and most recently as Vice President of DTC for Antinori California. Kenny has more than 20 years of strategic wine marketing experience, building DTC and CRM programs for Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars and Patz & Hall, consulting with luxury wineries through Ensemble Marketing Group, and leading a 40-person team as Vice President of Marketing and DTC at Trefethen Family Vineyards.
The Wine Business Monthly 2026 Salary Survey Report puts the average Vice President of Marketing salary at $248,519 across all producer sizes, and $233,250 even at wineries producing under 50,000 cases, before benefits, bonuses, payroll taxes, or recruiting costs. Wine club and tasting room management roles are also getting pricier, with average salaries up 9% and 11% year over year to $97,993 and $95,076.
DeLong and Kenny partner with each winery for a set number of hours each week, serving as fractional DTC and marketing leaders and translating strategy into results. Their work includes building and refining membership and loyalty programs, improving CRM and email performance, setting tasting-room strategy, and coaching existing teams.
David Franke, President of Chappellet Vineyards, described Hopscotch’s value: “They worked day-to-day with our team to implement important changes that have helped us grow when many businesses are struggling,” adding that their role as supervisors and coaches “helped grow our staff in ways that continue to benefit us.”
The economics are what make the model so well suited to this moment. A fractional engagement gives a winery executive-level experience at a fraction of the cost of a full-time CMO or VP, with no long-term payroll commitment. Because fractional leaders are engaged on a contract basis, wineries avoid the benefits, payroll taxes, recruitment costs, and other overhead that come with a full-time executive hire, and the engagement can be scaled up or down as needs change. Rather than paying a full executive salary for work that may only require part of a leader’s week, wineries pay for the expertise they actually use.
DeLong and Kenny bring deep, practical knowledge of the systems wineries rely on, moving beyond high-level recommendations to specific, actionable solutions and direct implementation support. They work alongside each client team to lead, supervise, and coach staff, leaving clients with stronger internal capabilities, more effective systems and processes, and teams equipped to sustain results independently after the engagement ends.
“We engaged Hopscotch DTC in late 2025 for a six-month commitment to help us refine and upgrade our Hospitality and Direct-to-Consumer programs. They proved to be far more than consultants for an important channel for Bevan Cellars, they became trusted advisors for our overall business. Not only did our top-line sales grow, but we also added valuable clients and enhanced the brand’s prestigious position in the market. Hopscotch DTC helped us develop processes and systems that provided valuable insights into our business. They operate with a disciplined, time-specified, metric-based mindset focused on deliverables. Vida and Tiffany’s long-history in the valley and their network of friends and associates helped Bevan Cellars connect with other support services that benefited our business. While the initial six-month agreement with Hopscotch has concluded (with great results), we have retained their services for DTC offers and general counsel. I can’t recommend Hopscotch DTC highly enough.
Pat Kane, General Manager, Bevan Cellars
“Hopscotch DTC has been a great partner, helping us strengthen our DTC sales, hospitality, and customer service. Their fractional leadership approach gives small and medium-sized wineries access to top-tier talent and expertise without the cost of a full-time executive.”
Jon Ruel, President, Early Mountain Vineyards
Founded in 2024 by Vida DeLong and Tiffany Kenny, Hopscotch DTC provides fractional DTC and marketing leadership for wineries and luxury hospitality brands. Hopscotch works alongside client teams to build membership and loyalty programs, improve CRM and email performance, shape tasting-room strategy, and coach staff.
DeLong brings 30 years of luxury hospitality and direct sales experience, including senior DTC roles at Far Niente Wine Estates and Crimson Wine Group and, most recently, vice president of DTC for Antinori California. Kenny brings more than 20 years of experience developing DTC and CRM programs for Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars, Patz & Hall, and other luxury wineries; most recently, she led a 40-person team as vice president of marketing and DTC at Trefethen Family Vineyards.
