Toni Carlino has been appointed as the Chair of the Wine Communicators of Australia, replacing outgoing Angus Barnes who has occupied the role for almost five years.
Carlino, who has over 20 years of sales and marketing experience in wine, travel and hospitality is currently Marketing Manager with Fogarty Wine Group.
Speaking to TheShout about her appointment, Carlino said it was a great honour to take up the National Chair role and that she was looking forward to continuing the WCA’s great work.
“There’s always been such strong leaders of the industry in the Chair role, so to be appointed Chair is a great honour,”. Carlino said. “I think it’s also really exciting because we’ve been on such a journey for the last few years, particularly driven by Angus and I’ve been Vice-Chair and we’ve really been setting a clear strategy for Wine Communicators and then delivering on that.”
Looking ahead Carlino said: “We’ve worked hard to establish a strong position for WCA so I want to make sure we maintain. I think relevance is really important to us, so continuing that and delivering strong programs is really important. The Mentor Program is really important to me, I think it’s so important to have collaboration between the younger communicators and those who have been in the industry for a while.”
She added: “It has been so rewarding supporting Angus and the board of WCA over the past few years. The changes under the stewardship from Angus has made the WCA become one of the most relevant, educational and exciting bodies within our wine community. I look forward to working with our very talented board and executive officer to take WCA to the next level.”
Leaving the National Board of WCA as Chair, Barnes said” “I am delighted that Toni Carlino takes over as Chairperson. I have had nearly five years as Chair and it is time for someone else to take the reins as the WCA continues to grow and enhance its relevance in the wine industry. I am proud to be part of this great organisation. We are a strong voice and have had many significant events and activities during the last years. I will continue to serve on the board and look forward to working with Toni, the board and the executive into the future.”
Executive Officer, Lynda Schenk commented on his achievements, saying: “Angus has been instrumental in evolving WCA and has been a pillar of strength in his leadership of the board and leaves it in a positive financial position which has always been his goal.”