In these days of Vinitaly 2018, it is worth looking back to the data concerning the export of Tuscan wine in 2017, to better understand the trends of the sector. The data describe a positive situation and a slight increase over the previous year. Tuscany stays firmly in second place among the Italian regions for quantity of wine exported, increasing by 5 percentage points, the value of exports in the first half of 2017. So far nothing different from the trend recorded in recent years, albeit in a slower way than the national average, Tuscan wine exports continue to grow year after year.
What is new is that for the first time are not the DOP Tuscan Reds dragging international markets, but grow the Super Tuscans and whites. The wines, of which belong to the DOCG, DOC and IGP, denominations are at the apex of the pyramid of quality and therefore enjoy greater trust from consumers. Confidence is also reflected in foreign markets. The Tuscany is a land of great red wines, of which the Sangiovese is the vine, which occupies in Tuscany more than 62% of land available for growing wine.
The DOP more noble, like Chianti, Chianti Classico, Nobile di Montepulciano, Vernaccia di San Gimignano and Brunello di Montalcino have so far largely catalyzed by the market of Tuscan wine exports. Among the red wines exported from Italy, the DOP Tuscan red wines represent 38% of the total.
The data describe the superpower already famous and established territorial designations. The large producers who are firmly anchored the Tuscan brandimage, certainly are synonymous with quality, but do not represent fully the view of Tuscan wine.
The numbers provided by ISMEA (Istituto di Servizi per il Mercato Agricolo Alimentare) paint a Tuscany wine consisting of over 22000 small or medium-sized companies. The Tuscan wine is not only linked to the great reds, but is above all that of territoriality are emerging. In goblets of small wine producers of the hills of Lucca, of the Arno Valley, Garfagnana, Maremma andElba Island you will find tradition and character.
Small producers, which often operate outside of the most famous discipline, must even more effort to make themselves known. To make it clear to international big spenders "in small packages there's really good wine", is still a long way to go. We must exploit the Tuscany regional brand and promote events that go beyond the classic Tuscan Previews.
But what is the winning strategy to bring out small producers?
The international wine market is changing significantly profile and strong markets such as USAnext to classics, Germany, Canada and United Kingdom are increasing consumption in Asian markets and in Russia. The harvest 2017 also recorded a worrying scarcity of production, which caused an increase in business costs intended to pour on the price lists. The price is not the only element of uncertainty: fear of duties on the part of the United States hangs for some time now on the Tuscan market, although for the moment the average prices of exports of local wine are lower than those of other character.
Hence the need of small producers to network and find new sales channels that allow the growth.
An interesting channel for internationalization is thewine tourism. Wine tourism has entered recently joined national legislative priorities, thanks to the inclusion in the budget bill 2017 a specific amendment, known as Ddl Stefàno. This law provides subsidies and tax benefits for wineries who want to introduce their wines, not only through tastings, but also with activities aimed at promoting the whole company assets, closely connected with the territory. The law on wine tourism gives dignity to a strategic sector for the Italian wine, that alone is worth more than 2.5 billion euros per year. Wine tourism plays a decisive role in the development of wine sales and represents an atypical form of internationalisation, since they are not the goods to travel to consumers, but tourists to move towards the lands of origin of wines.
But how can small companies make the most of the link between marketing and tourism and export with the aim to sell their products?
It's Tuscany is the portal that aims to promote the brand Tuscany in an innovative and comprehensive, providing the online promo-tools disclosure Tuscan companies able to tell themselves, the territory and its typical character. It's Tuscany is a channel that brings together 100% Tuscan product offerings with its online application, going to catch not only the mere transactional intent, but helping to create buzz around the medium-small lesser known realities in so as to increase their notoriety and reputation. In this way we make out the small Excellencies, the "small packages", which play a crucial role in brand building Tuscany.