Australia Post are partnering with digital disruptor, WINEDEPOT, to connect Australia’s 2,500 wineries directly with retailers, promising same-day delivery and a seamless end-to-end supply chain solution.
The vision of wine industry veteran and CEO of Digital Wine Ventures (ASX:DW8), Dean Taylor, WINEDEPOT will combine centralised warehouses or ‘depots’ with a smart logistics platform to significantly reduce delivery times, freight costs and the opportunity for breakages.
Named one of the 50 Stars of Wine and TOP 50 People in Ecommerce, Taylor has spent 20 years building successful digital-focused wine businesses, disrupting Australia’s $40 billion wine industry.
“The WINEDEPOT logistics solution has been specifically designed to remove the layers and layers of inefficiency and wastage that exist in the supply chain,” he shares.
Currently most retailers operate from a single warehouse site in either Sydney or Melbourne, with stock purchased tying up valuable working capital. Interstate orders are typically shipped by the case, which is expensive and can take anywhere between 2 and 10 days to arrive at its destination.
“Online consumers have been trained by the likes of Amazon to expect free and fast delivery and if you don’t provide that your customers will eventually go elsewhere.”
“Our network of depots will allow retailers to have a presence in other capital cities, dramatically reducing their freight costs and delivery times – without having to invest in that inventory or infrastructure.”
WINEDEPOT is a natural evolution from Taylor’s previous wine storage and e-commerce businesses. His first venture Wine Ark – an off-site climate-controlled storage for wine collectors – was the first company of its kind in the world to provide their customers’ online access to their collections, and later sold for $8.5m. He then leveraged technology to launch Wine Exchange an online trading platform; The Cellar Club, a premium wine club andCrackawines.com.au – an online marketplace that allowed wineries to sell direct-to-consumer.
To learn more, visit www.digitalwine.ventures or www.winedepot.com