Areni Live Analysis: Future Proofing The Wine Industry

Seven people gathered around the table at ARENI Live in Stellenbosch in July, to hash out the topic of how to future-proof the wine business. A cold winter’s day, the electricity suddenly switched off as South Africa’s electrical grid overloaded. A moment later, the winery’s generator kicked in, and everything returned to normal.

If anything was a portent of the future, that was it, as Europe now enters the coldest time of the year grappling with an energy crisis that may soon cause regular blackouts. There’s a lot to be learned  from South Africans’ resilience in the face of infrastructure woes, including the need to build self-sufficiency wherever possible, and be prepared with backups.

Over two lively hours, a number of different future-proofing possibilities were discussed. Below are the top nine of those that were agreed that morning.

The discussion was held under Chatham House rules of attribution and so the speakers have not been identified.

ARENI Live is our annual think tank, held once each year in a different part of the globe. It gathers top minds to collectively think about the future of fine wine.

Picture by Vuurtoring Media