The Future of Wine Ecommerce and How to Help Merchants Grow

Wine drinking is not the sole domain of France. According to the Wine Institute, Americans consumed 899 million gallons of wine in 2023. The wine market in the United States is projected to reach a market volume of $44.4 billion in 2029.

While consumers buy most wine at their local supermarket or favourite speciality wine store, online sales as a share of revenue have almost doubled in less than 10 years, with mobile sales projected to surpass desktop sales 60/40 by 2027.

Macroeconomic factors, like a strong economy and large population, have influenced strong sales, which analysts expect to continue. Changing consumer habits have also led to greater demand. People no longer perceive wine as a luxury item, opening the door for direct-to-consumer (DTC) sales, boutique wineries selling online, and entrepreneurs looking to start an online wine business.

Vintners may be subject to the vagaries of weather like any other cash crop. One way to sidestep the unpredictability of Mother Nature is to embrace the latest Millennial trend: winery ecommerce. 

Challenges of wine ecommerce

Convenience and variety represent the twin growth engines that boost sales. However, a wine ecommerce website has several hurdles to enjoying the fruits of its labour.

Compliance and licencing for online wine sales.

Regulation and compliance requirements for online sales help maintain the quality of the product and public safety. Wine sales across state lines and country borders are heavily regulated, adding to the complexity of order fulfilment. As an ecommerce winery, meeting state and federal laws and securing the necessary licences are prerequisites to selling wine online.

Shipping and logistics.

You want to provide regulators with the proper labelling and documentation to ensure the wine is shipped legally. It's essential not only for the regulators, but correct labelling also expedites delivery. 

Wine needs special handling, packaging, and temperature control to ensure it maintains its quality upon delivery and meets your customers' expectations.

Shipping and logistics go beyond labels. These factors represent significant costs to the end product. You want to share pricing and shipping costs early in the buying process. Transparency is critical to providing a seamless online user experience on your wine ecommerce website.

Inventory and supply chain management.

"New World" wines, like those produced in Argentina, Australia, New Zealand, and the United States, require new ways of managing inventory and supply. In the US, wineries are associated with a specific region, and production depends on differing climates, soils and crops, which vary by season.

Keeping an inventory of vintages and limited releases synchronised across different locations can be tricky for wineries that sell online and through tasting rooms and wine cellars. 

Maintaining a balance between keeping popular wines stocked and selling out a limited edition is where winery software excels. Real-time inventory management processes orders and updates inventory. In addition, artificial intelligence (AI) analyses inventory data to optimise inventory levels, minimising the likelihood of oversells and out-of-stock situations.

Customer trust and education.

Although wine has become an integral part of American culture, the nuances of buying wine online can feel intimidating. Three-quarters of those polled believe there's a right way and a wrong way to drink wine. Educational content demystifying "sniffing" and "swirling" could go a long way toward building trust.

Another potential drawback is that customers need help to taste the wine they want to buy. 

Offering a flight sampler (similar to a wine bar) as an introductory offer could alleviate anxieties about choosing the wrong wine. Using machine learning to create personalised wine pairings based on past purchases will help overcome choice overload and build customer loyalty.

Essential features for a successful wine ecommerce platform

Technological innovations have given rise to many features wine ecommerce websites can use. Some capabilities are unique to wine merchants, like complex tax integrations and winery point-of-sale (POS) systems. The best ecommerce solution for your winery will include these must-have features:

Age verification tools.

According to the Wine Institute, "Failure by a winery to verify that the purchaser is at least 21 years of age and comply with other state rules may have serious consequences and potentially put their federal basic permits at risk." 

As part of their Code of Advertising Standards and Digital Marketing Guidelines, they recommend verifying online purchasers' legal drinking age, even if a particular state law doesn't require it, as a best practise.

Adding an age verification process is a non-starter, and BigCommerce offers many apps designed for that purpose.

Robust stock and inventory management.

Changing seasons, stock, trends and supply chains can wreak havoc on your well-laid plans for a profitable year. That's where real-time inventory management can make all the difference because everything flows from there – efficient order processing, optimal inventory levels, and on-point product recommendations. 

A robust stock management system shares your store's database so you can manage complex omnichannel sales, too. You'll always know how much stock you have on hand, on-site or in your online store.

Reliable payment processor system.

Data breaches are the bane of ecommerce websites, and wine ecommerce is no different. Keeping customers' personal and financial information secure is the number one way to build trust. A reliable and secure payment processing system is a must. Consider the following factors when deciding which to choose:

• Fees: Compare the fees charged by different payment processors, including transaction, setup, and monthly expenses.

• Payment methods: Consider which payment methods you want to accept, such as credit cards, debit cards and online payment systems like PayPal. Choose a payment processor that offers the payment methods most often used by your customers.

• Security: Payment security is critical for both you and your customers. Choose a payment processor with secure technologies like SSL encryption to protect your transactions and sensitive customer data.

• Integration: Consider how well the payment processor integrates with your winery website and other software systems, such as your shopping cart, CRM system, and accounting software. Choose a processor that offers seamless integration to make it easier to manage transactions.

Shipping and compliance management.

State regulations for shipping wine vary, and some carriers don't ship alcohol at all, adding to the complexity of selling wine online. Before shipping wine out of state, you must receive a shipping licence from each state where you intend to conduct business.

Some carriers may restrict the type or quantity of wine shipped in a single order. Most carriers require wine shipments to be labelled clearly and add a surcharge to the shipment. So, be sure to research the carrier's specific wine shipping policies. Some return the shipment at your expense; others destroy it.

All of this falls under the umbrella of compliance management. The winery software you choose should be able to manage shipping restrictions, tax calculations, and all the necessary permits for interstate and international shipments.

Subscription options.

Wine clubs were and are a way for local wineries to generate recurring income where wine enthusiasts and club members receive monthly shipments containing personalised wine selections. Subscriptions may include access to exclusive events and discounts. The growing DTC wine sales are a direct result of a winery's corresponding wine club. 

The absence of a middleman between wineries and consumers is an appealing business model. It lets the owners connect with fans and generate more revenue per bottle. 

Subscription-based loyalty plans offer a different flavour of the wine club, which appeals to an older, higher-earning individual. Providing an entry-level experience allows wineries to expand to a younger demographic raised in the subscription economy.

The commerce platform you choose should allow customers to sign up for the subscription/membership plan and manage their delivery and wine preferences if you decide to go this route.

Diverse marketing tools.

Hosting in-person tastings and exhibiting at farmer's markets are great ways to connect with wine lovers, but you must also use digital sales channels to grow your business. Look for a wine ecommerce platform that offers these digital marketing tools.

• Email marketing: Send your customers newsletters, promotional offers and other updates. Research shows it is the number one tactic for customer retention.

• Social media marketing: Use platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to post organic content and paid ads to attract and engage potential customers.

• Paid advertising: Platforms like Google AdWords and Facebook ads let you reach a targeted audience and drive traffic to your website.

• Affiliate and influencer marketing: Partner with affiliates and influencers in the wine industry to promote your products and earn a flat fee or commission on sales.

• Customer loyalty programs: Offer referral incentives and rewards to encourage repeat business and loyalty.

Scalability.

A scalable website lets you create and manage a website that can adapt to surges in traffic and an expanding commerce catalogue. Knowing that your chosen platform allows you to expand into new markets is especially valuable for wine merchants who sell across state lines and international borders. Scalability is crucial because your website must support increased user demand without slowing down or crashing as your business grows.

The future of wine ecommerce

Wine's economic impact on the US grew by 25%, from $220 billion in 2017 to $276 billion in 2022. DTC is now 12% of the total wine sold, according to Jim Trezise, President of WineAmerica.

Digital is no longer a trend; it's necessary if wine merchants want to increase revenue and expand into new markets. Email, social media, ecommerce, and SMS messaging are all part of the mix.

DTC sales are booming as participation in wine clubs has grown, with consumers increasingly choosing to buy wine directly from wineries and smaller producers. According to the 2024 Direct-to-Consumer Wine Survey Report by Silicon Valley Bank, DTC represents 72% of the average premium winery total sales. Eight percent (8%) of those sales come directly from the Web.

Here are more trends that are shaping the future of winery ecommerce.

Increased use of technology. 

Wine ecommerce businesses will continue to adopt new technologies to streamline the online shopping experience. Integrating online and offline touchpoints for a unified customer journey is becoming more common. For example, some wineries use virtual reality to create a multi-sensory wine-tasting experience.

Wine club subscriptions. 

Many wineries offer subscription services, a convenient way to discover new wines. Subscriptions may include access to exclusive events, discounts, in-store wine tastings, a virtual sommelier or a private winery tour. The SVB Survey reports that wine clubs are a critical sales channel, representing 39% of all DTC 2023 sales.

Sustainable and eco-friendly practises. 

Ethical sourcing product labelling is common in the beauty and health category. It's now become part of the larger context for wineries. Consumers are increasingly demanding transparency in sustainable and ethical practises. Fair trade and the environment are causes consumers care about. Companies that make environmental and social-related claims enjoy greater loyalty, according to a 2023 joint study by McKinsey and NielsenHQ.

Eco-conscious wineries using sustainable packaging, reducing their carbon footprint, and supporting environmentally friendly practises could represent product differentiators and a lasting competitive advantage.

Personalisation and human-centric selling.

Human-centric selling is an approach to sales that prioritises the customer's needs, interests and pain points in the buying process. Consumers want to feel understood. Ecommerce platforms that use data and AI can deliver personalised product recommendations, tailored educational content, promotional offers, and curated wine lists. 

Accenture research shows that 84% of consumers are interested in personalised products — and would pay more to get them.

Email marketing presents ripe opportunities for personalisation. For example, if a customer leaves your website with items in their shopping cart, you can send a personalised cart abandonment email reminding the customer to complete the purchase.

Alternatively, customers with a specific lifetime value may qualify for special discounts or exclusive events.

Wine retailers can also use customer data to offer personalised service and support, such as customised wine labels or gift sets, to add a personal touch to the customer experience.

Frictionless buying process.

Reducing friction in the purchase process can mean the difference between profitability and unprofitability. Here are some tips to remember:

• Use clear and detailed product descriptions, high-quality images and a user-friendly website design to make it easy for customers to find and learn about your products.

• Allow customers to self-select their preferences. Make it easy for customers to filter product listings based on region, type, bottle size, etc.

• Offer a live web chat service or questionnaire to help customers narrow their preferred wines based on their preferences.

• Provide various payment options, including credit cards, debit cards and online payment systems like PayPal, to make it easy for customers to pay for their purchases.

• Simplify the checkout process by reducing the steps required to complete a purchase and minimising the information customers need to enter.

• Provide clear shipping and return policies. Spell out the cost of shipping, delivery options and your return policy. Clarity reduces uncertainty and makes customers feel more confident about their purchases.

How BigCommerce can help you scale your winery ecommerce 

As a winery, you nurture your soil to grow the best grapes to make the finest wines. That same care should go into choosing your wine ecommerce platform. There are unique requirements to selling wine online, like verifying the age of your customer and shipping restrictions.

The best choice for long-term success is one that offers seamless integration with essential capabilities. Below are features that make BigCommerce the complete solution for wine ecommerce websites

Seamless WineDirect integration.

WineDirect offers an end-to-end intuitive interface that serves over 2,000 wineries worldwide, enabling wineries to provide next-level service and create lasting customer relationships. They are a leader in DTC services, including ecommerce, point-of-sale (POS), wine club management, streamlined shipping and compliance, real-time inventory sync, and more. 

BigCommerce enables beautiful customisable store experiences, fast checkout, powerful analytics, and customisation through flexible APIs and third-party apps, providing a perfect partnership for WineDirect and wine brands worldwide.

Excise tax management.

Someone once said that life has two certainties: death and taxes. Thankfully, automation can help with managing your taxes.

As a retailer of manufactured goods, your store is responsible for federal, state and local taxes. These are excise taxes levied on specific goods like wine. You'll also be responsible for differing tax rates if you ship across state lines. Multiplying sales tax and tax rates and managing tax exemptions for B2B shoppers can get complicated.

BigCommerce is here to make it easy. Our team of specialists configures the automatic tax setup feature for you.

Unified inventory management.

Feedonomics has redefined omnichannel retail with powerful tools designed to reach more people and drive more sales. You can manage inventory across marketplaces, social commerce and sales outlets with their seamless integration.

With BigCommerce and Feedonomics, you can optimise, advertise, sell and fulfil products across 100+ channels, driving performance, higher returns on advertising spend, and, ultimately, more revenue.

Powerful Point-of-Sale (POS) integrations.

To fully embrace your customers where they live, you want to be able to manage both in-person sales and ecommerce orders.

Whether customers order a particular vintage for home delivery, discover it during a wine tasting, or shop through their favourite social media platforms, choose the point-of-sale (POS) system that fits your winery's unique character. 

From limited-release reserves to your signature varietals, seamlessly manage your entire wine portfolio through your BigCommerce dashboard while expanding your reach across multiple sales channels — your website, Instagram Shop, online marketplaces, or your estate tasting room.

B2B features.

Broaden your horizons with a B2B marketing strategy selling to wholesalers and distributors. You can find everything you need to cater to a B2B buyer in BigCommerce. We've designed our Buyer Portal to streamline customer relationships and automate admin processes like invoices and quotes. We aim to reduce operational burdens so you can do what you do best — engage with your customers and sell more wine.

Wine ecommerce success storeys with BigCommerce

Vineyards are devoted to growing grapes. Wine merchants are dedicated to engaging customers, evolving those relationships and expanding their business. Technology empowered these two BigCommerce customers to tailor the online shopping experience to make new friends and surprise and delight existing customers.

Moore Brothers Wine Company.

Case Study: Moore Brothers Wine Company

Not surprisingly, two brothers, who had worked for 45 years as wine buyers in the City of Brotherly Love (Philadelphia), launched their wine company in 1996, placing their customers front and centre. When they chose BigCommerce as their ecommerce platform, they intended to give their customers the kind of experience and information they would have received in-store.

What sold them was BigCommerce's rich array of APIs, allowing them to engage more with new customers and tap the POS for purchase histories, giving insight into product recommendations. Through custom fields, they could describe to their customers the tasting notes and the people and places associated with their wines. 

They've seen a 28% increase in conversion rates and a 16% increase in revenue as they've grown their customer base and increased the functionality of their wine ecommerce website.

Woodland Hills Wine Company.

Case Study: Woodland Hills Wine Company

Like Phoenix rising from the ashes, the 1991 Northridge earthquake in California rocked their world but became the impetus for a brighter future. With the building and store's inventory destroyed, Paul, the owner, was forced to find new clients outside the state and began selling and shipping wine nationwide. Transformed as Woodland Hills Wine Company, their niche is in collector-based wines. 

As readers know, regulations and compliance play a large part in the profitability of wine companies selling across state lines. Paul admits the time and expense of maintaining PCI compliance was a struggle. Switching to BigCommerce gave them more time to focus on what they do best – sell wine.

They've expanded internationally and are now importers of French, Italian and German wines and have found plenty of customers seeking out $3,000 – $15,000 bottles of wine. Their select clientele has expectations about the quality they deliver, and their website proves to be part of that experience.

Oenophiles find them online, and Woodland Hills Wine Company is reaping the reward. They've seen a 190% increase in organic search revenue and a 387% increase in organic search conversion rate.

The final word

The world of wine ecommerce is rapidly evolving, driven by technological innovation, changing consumer preferences, and the growing DTC sales model. Success in this competitive market requires more than great wine — it demands a sophisticated, customer-centric online approach.

Key to thriving in wine ecommerce is understanding and implementing essential features like robust age verification, seamless inventory management, secure payment processing and personalised marketing strategies. Platforms like BigCommerce are emerging as powerful allies, offering integrated solutions that address the unique challenges of selling wine online.

FAQs about wine ecommerce