Wine Direct Shipments Skyrocket as Average Price Per Bottle Decreases

Winery-to-consumer direct shipments have exceeded the overall growth of the American wine retail sector dramatically, increasing to $1.57 Billion in 2013. According to reports based on millions of transactions in 2013 from ShipCompliant and Wines & Vines, the average price per bottle shipped has decreased for the first time since first being tracked in 2010. The newly-released, downloadable annual winery-to consumer shipping report gives detailed insights on the where, how, and when of winery shipments; furthermore, it predicts the future of winery to consumer shipping over a ten-year pipeline.

Notable report findings include:

• In 2013 the volume of shipments increased 9.3% to 3.47 million cases, while total sales of winery-to-consumer shipments increased 7.7% to $1.57 Billion
• 2013 was the first year that the average price per bottle of wine dropped from the prior year and rested at $37.78
• Shipments from Napa Valley represented nearly 50% of the total value of the channel
• Sonoma County and Oregon experienced explosive growth in direct shipments in 2013
• Shipments of Pinot Noir continue to increase across the country
• With only modest assumptions concerning growth, the direct to consumer shipping could grow to $3.2 billion in ten years.