For a winery looking to expand into Asia, finding an importer is often the first major objective. But securing a meeting—or even a first order—is only the beginning.

The more important question is whether that importer can help build a sustainable business for your wines.

Does your portfolio fit their customers? Does it fill a gap in their range? Will your brand receive attention from their sales team? And what are you prepared to contribute once the wines arrive?

During the Wine Trends & Opportunities in Asia webinar hosted by Asia Wine Ratings, Kamal Malik MS, Grant Smith, Dominique Noël and Alexandra Rendall explored these questions with Sid Patel, CEO of Beverage Trade Network.

Their advice offers a practical guide for producers: research the market, approach relevant partners personally, and give them a clear commercial reason to work with you.

Start With Where You Want Your Wine to Sell

Before building an importer list, decide where your wines belong.

A small family winery seeking restaurant placements may need a different partner from a producer targeting supermarket distribution. A premium estate may need an importer with access to sommeliers and private customers, while an accessible range may require broader retail reach.

Alexandra Rendall, who works with wineries seeking access to Asian markets, recommended starting with the shelves and restaurant wine lists producers want to appear on.

That makes the search more focused. Instead of asking, “Who imports wine into Vietnam?” a producer can ask, “Which importers supply the restaurants and retailers where my wines would make sense?”

Visit those businesses where possible. Study their lists, their prices, and the wines they already carry. Look at how wines are presented and which suppliers appear repeatedly.

This research helps establish both the right potential partners and the competitive environment your wine will enter.

Treat Each Market Individually

Grant Smith, Managing Director and Owner of Bangkok-based Bespoke Fine Wine, warned against assuming that an approach that works in one Asian market will work throughout the region.

He described differences in consumption habits, culture and business practices that producers need to understand before pitching.

A producer should therefore prepare a specific case for each target market. The opening wines, customer segment, pricing and sales support may all need to change.

Even within a country, the opportunity can vary by location. Alexandra highlighted regional differences in mainland China and encouraged producers to consider where their wines fit beyond the most familiar cities.

The practical lesson is to narrow the search. A relevant shortlist of importers serving your intended customers is a stronger starting point than a large database used for a general introduction.

Find a Gap in the Importer’s Portfolio

One of Alexandra’s clearest points was that producers should examine an importer’s existing portfolio before approaching them.

She identified wine style, region, story, and price as factors that determine whether a wine has a place in the range.

An importer with numerous Bordeaux producers may have little reason to add another, however good the wine is. A producer needs to explain what its addition would enable the importer to offer.

That gap might be a price point, a style, an origin or a particular role on a restaurant list.

For example, an importer may have premium white wines but lack an accessible option for by-the-glass service. Another may have strong retail distribution but need a distinctive small-estate range for independent restaurants.

These are possibilities to investigate, rather than assumptions to put into a pitch.

Review the portfolio carefully and ask yourself:

- What does this importer already do well?
- Which customers does it serve?
- Where could my wine add something useful?
- Which existing wines would it compete with?
- Can I explain the difference clearly?

The goal is to arrive with a credible reason for the conversation.

Make Your First Approach Personal and Relevant

Grant spoke critically about blanket BCC emails and generic presentations. Importers receive approaches from many wineries, and a broad message gives them little evidence that the producer has understood their business.

Your first email should show why you selected that particular company.

Keep the introduction concise. Identify your winery, explain the relevant portfolio fit, and introduce a small number of wines suited to the opportunity.

A useful opening could be:

“We noticed your portfolio has a strong selection of premium European reds. We would like to explore whether our fresh, food-friendly whites could complement your restaurant range at an accessible by-the-glass price.”

That opening should reflect actual research. Follow it with enough information for the importer to assess whether a discussion is worthwhile: wine styles, export pricing, availability and the support you can provide.

Grant also cautioned against relying on generic AI-generated pitch material. Alexandra acknowledged that AI can help with research and identifying contacts, but the producer still needs to check the findings and make the approach relevant.

The quality of the pitch depends on understanding the buyer.

Explain the Wine in Language Customers Can Use

A producer may be deeply attached to an appellation, classification, or technical detail. Those credentials can matter, but they need to connect with the customer’s reason for buying.

Alexandra encouraged wineries to describe their wine styles in understandable language. Dominique Noël similarly argued for making wine easier to approach.

Kamal Malik MS added an important qualification: recognised names such as Bordeaux, Burgundy and Champagne carry meaning, while more detailed classifications can become overwhelming.

For a producer, this means giving the importer language its sales team can use confidently.

Describe what the wine tastes like, the occasion it suits and the customer it could appeal to. Explain whether it is fresh and aromatic, light and fruit-driven, or rich and structured. Where relevant, describe its role with food or on a by-the-glass list.

Technical information can support that explanation. The commercial proposition should be easy to grasp.

Choose a Partner Who Will Develop Your Brand

Dominique warned that a small producer can become lost inside a large importer’s portfolio.

His advice was to look for a partner committed to developing the brand: someone willing to meet customers, organise tastings and continue promoting the wines when the producer is away.

This makes the importer’s working approach as important as its size.

Ask how new brands are introduced to the sales team. Find out which accounts could be appropriate and how the importer assesses progress after launch.

Discuss what happens between producer visits. Who follows up with interested buyers? How are staff trained? What content or materials would help the team sell?

These questions should lead to a shared view of what each side will contribute. An importer needs a commercially relevant product, and a winery needs a partner able to give it consistent attention.

Make Your Market Visit Count

Kamal and Alexandra both highlighted the value of local knowledge when planning a visit.

A local adviser or representative can help identify suitable importers, arrange relevant meetings and explain cultural expectations. That support can also help a producer understand where its wines might sell.

Alexandra recommended combining importer meetings with restaurant visits, store visits and conversations with sommeliers.

A useful visit should help you answer practical questions:

- Which wines are selling at your intended price?
- What appears on by-the-glass lists?
- How do buyers respond to your style?
- How does your proposition compare with existing options?
- What would an importer need from you to move forward?

A tasting dinner or a small trade tasting may provide useful feedback when organised around the right audience.

If travelling for a trade show, Alexandra suggested arranging additional meetings beforehand where possible. After the show, buyers may be tired and have received many approaches.

The purpose of the trip is to return with a clearer understanding of the market and specific next steps.

Discuss Digital Sales With Your Potential Partner

Dominique highlighted the growing importance of online wine commerce and digital communication in Asia.

Alexandra noted that accessing these channels depends partly on whether the producer has appropriate wine styles, pricing and volumes—and on the importer’s ability to take the wines into those channels.

Include digital capability in your discussions.

Ask where the importer sells online, how products are presented and what it needs from producers. Clear images, understandable wine descriptions, local-language content and short videos may all contribute to a useful product presentation.

The relevant channels will vary by market and customer. The task is to understand the importer’s actual route to the consumer and how you can support it.

Build the Relationship Beyond the First Shipment

Dominique emphasised the need for ongoing communication and a willingness to spend time in the market.

He encouraged producers to ask practical questions: How is the wine selling? What feedback are customers giving? What can the winery do to help?

Depending on the market and the partner’s preferences, that communication may happen through messaging tools such as WeChat or WhatsApp as well as email.

Regular contact should produce useful action. If customers need a clearer explanation of the wine, provide it. If the sales team needs training, arrange it. If a visit could support important accounts, plan it with the importer.

Grant also stressed patience. Sample assessments, logistics, administrative processes, and competing priorities can slow progress. Producers should agree on reasonable next steps and follow up thoughtfully.

Patience works best when both sides understand what they are working towards.

Give the Importer a Business It Can Build

The webinar’s strongest message was that producers need to make a clear case for why their wines belong in a particular market and portfolio.

That case combines product fit, realistic pricing, understandable storytelling, and practical support.

Before your next importer approach, be ready to explain:

Who is this wine for? Where should it sell? What gap does it fill? And how will we help you develop it?

Answering those questions gives an importer something concrete to assess—and a reason to continue the conversation.

This article draws on the Wine Trends & Opportunities in Asia webinar hosted by Asia Wine Ratings, featuring Kamal Malik MS, Grant Smith, Dominique Noël and Alexandra Rendall, and moderated by Sid Patel.

Also read:
Exploring India’s evolving wine tastes, market challenges, emerging opportunities, and what producers need to achieve long-term success.
Understanding Vietnam’s Evolving Wine Market With Charles Dale
Leading Small and Medium-Sized Wine Retail Chains Across Asia
Inside Asia’s Evolving Wine Culture With Roberto Duran MS