In this interview Edoardo Freddi talks about wine trends in the first three months of the year, consumer preferences and some of our plans for 2023.
In Salvatore Licciardello’s interview with Edoardo Freddi for Italia Oggi, hot issues are discussed, such as export trends despite the continuing conflict between Russia and Ukraine and the various price rises of raw materials, energy and transport; but lighter and more curious topics are also touched upon, such as consumer preferences in the various international markets and EFI’s plans for 2023.
Below is the full interview.
Edoardo Freddi is one of the most relevant experts in the wine trade. Since 2012 his company, Efi, has been connecting Italian wine producers with importers and distributors all over the world. With one mission: to select excellence for the most discerning consumers. Based in Castiglione delle Stiviere, Edoardo Freddi International is the first Italian export management company in the wine sector, a ‘business accelerator’ for wineries that intend to play a leading role in international markets, a true ‘ambassador’ of the best of the Bel Paese wine world.
How much have the crisis factors of the economies affected the recovery of Italian wine exports?
Despite the continuing war and the stellar increases in raw materials, especially glass, transport, especially intercontinental, and energy bills, Italian wine exports are holding up. Volumes fell, especially in large-scale distribution, but export values rose significantly, driven by fine wines, especially in the catering industry. The trend remains positive and satisfying even looking at our results. We closed 2022 with 80 million managed turnover and 33 million bottles sold.
The first quarter of 2023 is going better than expected. But how is consumer demand changing around the world?
In these first months of the year, we have noticed that Apulian wines are performing very well, especially Primitivo di Manduria, with a 4% growth over the same period in 2022. Wines from Puglia are doing well especially in Northern Europe, such as Belgium and Holland, and in Eastern Europe, such as Albania and Poland. Another very interesting trend concerns deal wines, for which we are experiencing strong interest and curiosity from our customers in Scandinavia, Islamic countries and Canada. This new category of wine will conquer more and more countries and audiences, given the preferences and lifestyles of the new generations, who are attentive and sensitive to wellness and health issues. Prosecco will continue to expand in 2023, especially in the US, UK and Germany. Finally, a final trend that is really interesting and geographically distant, concerns wines from Campania, which are enjoying great success in South Korea. Here, consumers appreciate both white and red wines; they are in love with Aglianico and Greco di Tufo. In general, Campania has seen a growth in exports to this country of around 9%, compared to the first three months of 2022.
Competition, however, is increasing in this sector. How are you adapting your strategy?
To further increase the number of collaborations, with a particular focus on Tuscany, one of the regions with the most denominations. In general, in addition to expanding the portfolio, the work will be aimed at representing, especially on the foreign market, a selection of wineries producing labels of relevant importance, i.e. those fine wines that have made the history of Italian oenology and represent a unique tasting experience for connoisseurs and enthusiasts. For this project, a person will be employed as fine wines specialist and brand activation, who will be responsible for managing the allocation and promotion of this category of wines in the various markets.
Which countries are you aiming for in 2023?
We aim to expand and consolidate our presence in Canada, Germany, the UK, Japan, Scandinavia and all of continental Europe. The challenges are many, but with my team, which continuously and very well presides over these markets, the results will not be long in coming. Team that this year, in order to contribute to improving the value of the wine industry, is involved in an important training activity – through dedicated courses and masterclasses held by Cristina Mercuri – to develop a unique and shared approach useful to consolidate the success of the company and to enhance the excellence of its partners.
How important is and what role do you attribute to the Vinitaly exhibition in Verona?
Each exhibition has its own peculiarities, which is why it is essential for a distributor to attend the most important ones in order to listen to the markets through a more emotional involvement. Vinitaly is a fundamental fair for the export of our wines. It is here that importers can really discover the history of the country’s most niche wineries. I believe that at the end of these days, the greatest demand will be for wines from Southern Italy and Veneto. Apulia and Sicily, in particular, are home to many indigenous grape varieties that cannot be found elsewhere in the world: the grapes have adapted to the local climate and terroir over the centuries, resulting in truly unique wines. Not all consumers are familiar with these wines, even if they have heard of them, and at Vinitaly they will have the unique opportunity to taste them.
Apart from wine, however, are there other emerging segments in the sector for which you are thinking of a new project?
Italian Craft Spirits: a few months ago Sapiens Spirits was founded, a company with which we represent the best Italian spirits on international markets. As we did for wine, our goal is to become a point of reference for the growth of small craft spirits of excellence abroad, taking care of the promotion and sales of the brands, and giving them the opportunity to focus exclusively on production.