Carmel Exports – A Change of Direction For Israel’s Oldest Exporter
20.10.2009
By: Israel Preker
Chief Editor
www.wines-israel
In the photograph, from right to left:
Arnon Geva – International Business Director, Carmel Winery & Yatir Winery
Israel Ivzan – Chairman of SCV Carmel & CEO of Carmel Winery
Michael Israel – Brand Manager for Israel, Enotria World Wine, UK
I have asked Arnon Geva, export director, to answer some questions about Carmel Winery’s exports. Since moving from Castel, he has made changes to Carmel’s export policy. Wines-israel is interested to know what they are.
WHAT IS YOUR OFFICIAL POSITION?
AG: I am the International Business Director for both Carmel Winery and Carmel’s fully owned subsidiary, Yatir Winery.
WHEN DID YOU ARRIVE TO THE WORLD OF WINE?
AG: I was one of the partners that owned Domaine du Castel, being at different times CEO and responsible for Export. I was there from the beginning of Castel and was proud of what we achieved.
WHAT BROUGHT YOU TO CARMEL?
AG: I joined Carmel in February 2008. I was very impressed by the new management and the success they had in reviving an old brand. Carmel is one of Israel’s most historic companies and the oldest commercial winery, but was not well-known for the quality of its wines. However all that has changed.
PLEASE SPECIFY WHAT YOU MEAN?
AG: Carmel has had a program to revert from mass to quality, from kiddush wines to single vineyard wines. New vineyards were planted particularly in the Upper Galilee, three new boutique state of the art facilities were built (Kayoumi in the Upper Galilee, Yatir in the northern Negev and at Zichron) and a young, highly qualified winemaking team was recruited. Production of all non grape products was stopped, so we could focus on making wine.
BUT ISN’T IT A STEP DOWN FROM CASTEL TO CARMEL?
AG: Actually, I don’t think so. Yatir Forest, Carmel Limited Edition and Kayoumi Cabernet Sauvignon are three of the best wines in Israel. Carmel has always had wine at every price point, but these are real wines of quality, so I feel I am still dealing in the category of the ‘best Israeli wines’.
I SUPPOSE CARMEL HAS BEEN EXPORTING WINE FOR A LONG TIME?
AG: Carmel has been exporting wine since 1895 when the Carmel Wine Co. opened its first branch in Warsaw. We have been in England since 1898 and the USA since 1900! The Carmel brand name was first used as an export label. It is Israel’s oldest wine brand and Carmel was Israel’s first exporter.
IS IT TRUE CARMEL MAINLY SELLS KIDDUSH WINE & GRAPE JUICE?
AG: Well, in export this is no longer true. A few years ago, most of Carmel’s sales were (Vineyards) Selected, kiddush wine and grape juice. Carmel was the largest exporter in Israel, but the products sold were not good for our image then and certainly not in keeping with our new image now. Sales were good, but profitability was not.
So we decided to stop exporting these products, that is, unless we have no alternative because of prior commitments or agreements. Today our export drive is centered around the Appellation and Private Collection labels. They are complemented by the Kayoumi Single Vineyard wines from above and the Carmel Ridge from below.
CARMEL ONCE SOLD TO 40 COUNTRIES WORLDWIDE, WHAT IS YOUR POLICY TODAY?
AG: Carmel today is focused on a few countries where they are prepared to understand ‘new’ Carmel. We have changed distributors almost everywhere and been prepared to reduce sales to change our image. It is an ongoing process. Sales are down but profitability has improved.
WHAT ARE THE MAIN EXPORT MARKETS?
AG: England is the center of the wine world. Most of the new trends still begin there. It is the most competitive wine market in the world. It is very important for image to be well represented there. In the UK we are represented by Enotria, one of the leading wine importers, who are specialists in sales to restaurants and fine wine shops. Carmel and Yatir are very proud to be the chosen Israeli wineries by such a prestigious company.
America though, is the center of the Jewish wine world. It will always be the export market with the largest sales and biggest potential for Israel. There we are represented by Royal Wine Corp., which is the leading importer and distributor of kosher wines in the world. They are also the leaders in advancing the Israel brand in the United States.
We are working closely with them to implement our new strategy.
Apart from these countries, we have new importers in countries like France, Poland, are close to closing a deal in Russia and are also looking to Japan and China in the Far East.
Selling to fewer countries means more resources to focus on the correct marketing message to those countries.
We also sell to South America, Australia and other countries in Europe, like Switzerland and Belgium. The main country on our wish list is Germany.
DOES CARMEL STILL SELL ONLY TO THE KOSHER MARKET?
AG: Inevitably much of our sales are to the Jewish ethnic market. However our objective is to sell Israeli, eastern Mediterranean wines rather than just kosher, Jewish wines. Our choice of importers and change in focus reflects this change. For instance, Enotria are eastern & southern Mediterranean specialists that sell Israeli wines alongside Lebanese and Moroccan wines. When we get listings in famous restaurants it is as Israeli wine, not kosher wine.
ARE ALL CARMEL WINES MEVUSHAL?
AG: Today I am proud to say all our main labels, even Private Collection and Selected, are no longer mevushal. They are 100% kosher, but our objective is to make the best quality wines we can, that happen also to be kosher. It was not long ago that all Carmel wines were mevushal (flash pasteurized).
Our wines are also approved for use by Vegans and Vegetarians.
IS EXPORT LESS IMPORTANT TO CARMEL TODAY?
AG: We have a great team. I deal mainly with the business side. I work in close co-operation with Adam Montefiore, Wine Development Director for Carmel and Yatir, who deals with the wine issues, including contacts with journalists. We both sit on the Carmel management board and believe together we represent an experienced team. We are working to fulfill the change of policies implemented by Israel Ivzan, the Chairman of Carmel SCV des Grandes Caves and Managing Director of Carmel Winery. So export is still important and receives a high profile, but priorities have changed. We are today more interested in selling image and quality than just containers for the sake of sales.
SHOULD ISRAELI WINERIES BE WORKING MORE TOGETHER?
AG: All wineries are trying to sell brand Israel in their own way. We all have different objectives and different budgets. We believe it is ok for each winery to do the best it can individually at this time.
SHOULD ISRAEL BUILD A NAME IN SUPERMARKETS, LIKE CHILE AND AUSTRALIA HAVE DONE?
AG: I firmly believe Israel can’t succeed in markets based only on price and large volumes. Our wines can’t compete with Australia or Chile on price or volume. Therefore Israeli wines are best marketed into wine stores and restaurants rather than just supermarkets.
WHERE DOES YATIR COME IN?
AG: Yatir Winery is 100% owned by Carmel. It is managed independently, with its own manager, winemaker & vineyards. However it is marketed, sold & exported by Carmel. I am very proud to be involved with such a quality winery. Its wines are also different in style to those made by Carmel. Look at the difference in Yatir Forest and Carmel Limited Edition. It is nice to have two contrasting styles of winery to work with. For an exporter, being involved with Yatir means I am representing not only Israel’s largest winery, but also one of Israel’s finest boutique wineries.
ANY OTHER PROJECTS OF INTEREST?
AG: I am looking to advance wine tourism and to create a wine route. Carmel has wineries in the Upper Galilee (Kayoumi), Mt Carmel (Zichron Ya’acov), central coast (Rishon Le Zion) and northern Negev (Yatir), which means Carmel can play a central part in the concept. I was Chairman of the Judean Wineries Consortium for five years, where our achievements are well documented. So I have experience and an interest in this issue. I am working with Carmel’s new Center for Wine Culture to progress this.
GOOD LUCK & THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
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