Of Wine and Segmentation.

Here’s an interesting article I found in a recent weekend edition of Business Standard. It combined wine, consumer behaviour and marketing – quite an eclectic combination.

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What Category Are You?

One might define "wine-minded people” as those who prefer to savour their wine rather than to only guzzle beer or spirits.

The “PKK” (piye-khaye-khiske) culture of India is almost a cliché: you start the evening late, drink till even later, and leave the moment the food is done. In contrast wine-minded people (as yet more a Western behaviour trait) start early, have their dinner early, and sit afterwards chatting (an perhaps drinking). And in all likelihood they will have a glass (or two) of wine with their food.

In the West research has shown that people who drink wine have a higher level of education and income than, say, beer consumers. That does not, of course mean that if you drink wine you will be more successful – it merely indicates that as one becomes more successful, one’s taste changes towards more sophisticated things, wine being one of them.

Of course, even among wine consumers there are many segments, which could be by the prices at which they buy wines, the frequency of wine consumption and/or the knowledge of and motivation to buy wine. Project Genome was an effort in 2005 at psychographic segmentation of wine consumers in the US by Constellation Brands (the largest wine company worldwide)

This research posited the following segments:

Enthusiasts: People who are passionate and knowledgeable about wine – connoisseurs, perhaps, but in a positive sense, who like to read and research the subject, and are likely to have a cellar at home. They are distinct from

Traditionalists: Older, still knowledgeable but inclined to stick to known brands, wineries or even regions. Then there are the

Image Seekers: Don’t know too much about wine but like to feel both sophisticated as well as adventurous. Another category is the

Savvy Shopper: This lot looks for value (not necessarily the cheapest drop), and are willing to explore new brands and regions. They are not to be confused with the

Satisfied Sippers, who are not knowledgeable at all, and will buy any basic wine they are comfortable with. Lastly there is the

Overwhelmed Wine Drinker (the vast majority in India, I suspect) who just pick up whatever wine is pushed or catches his or her eye or sticks in mind.

Now that we have a fairly wide range of wines available in India, it would be interesting to see how the marketing people divvy-up wine consumers in India – and what brands would fall under which basket.

My own experience seems to indicate that the old 20-80 rule applies here too: not more than 20 percent of wine consumers really know or care much about what they’re drinking and the vast majority are either image seekers, satisfied sippers or just plain overwhelmed.
Sooo – we’ll drink a drink a drink – to Lily the Pink a pink a pink. Cheers!

By Alok Chandra
Publication: Business Standard

Column: The Wine Club
Page: Spend
Date: April 14, 2007