麻豆影院

With the launch of their business Winestyr,聽Robert Wilson聽(Fin鈥�06), pictured in the middle, his brother聽John Wilson聽(Jour鈥�06), right, and lifelong friend聽Scott Washburn聽(Fin鈥�06), left, have one strong intention: to elevate the visibility of small, niche wineries.

Since January 2012 Winestyr has connected small wineries across the country directly with consumers. It also makes it simpler and cheaper for an individual to purchase unique wine online. Robert says a consumer will never pay more than $10 for shipping, and the wine comes to them directly from the winery.

The concept for Winestyr emerged in 2010. Robert was preparing to move to England for a master鈥檚 degree program but was inspired by the idea for Winestyr when his father,聽Jack Wilson聽(Mktg鈥�72), lamented the fact that boutique wineries often were inaccessible to the public. Ecstatic about his new business concept, Robert put his master鈥檚 degree on hold.

鈥淚 never thought I鈥檇 have a good enough idea to be an entrepreneur,鈥� Robert says. 鈥淭he fact that I had saved money and cut my financial responsibilities [for England] set the stage to start a business and really jump head first into it.鈥�

With the success of craft breweries sprouting around the country, Robert wanted to bring the same model to wineries. He had some knowledge of the wine industry because of a brief stint selling wholesale wine to retailers in Chicago after graduating from CU-麻豆影院.

Scott joined Winestyr after working as one of the original account executives for Groupon in Orlando and John, an attorney, became the 鈥渒ey legal piece鈥� for Winestyr. With the crucial business and legal assets secured, the company became a reality. Robert became a certified specialist of wine in February 2012 by taking a difficult wine-based test ranging from wine chemistry to worldwide wine regions.

Scott, who helps with the acquisition and sale of wines, says he loves developing personal relationships with the winemakers.

鈥淚t鈥檚 been challenging, exciting and rewarding,鈥� he says. 鈥淎t the end of the day, we really just want to provide a great experience for customers and help wineries gain exposure.鈥�

The trio travels to the West Coast at least once a year to seek out unique wines, doing the remaining wine acquisition via phone. They launched with 20 wineries in their marketplace and continue to be selective as the company grows.

They promote their company through digital advertising, social media and word-of-mouth.

鈥淭here is a prevailing sense to root for the little guy,鈥� John says. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 who we鈥檙e out there to help.鈥�

Learn more at聽. Get $10 off your first Winestyr purchase
of $50 or more with the coupon code 鈥淏uffs鈥� at checkout.