About Vintage Economics
The wine industry is currently facing an array of disruptive challenges, ranging from demographic and generational change to competition with cannabis, that pose both opportunities and threats to wine-related businesses. Success in today’s rapidly evolving and hyper-competitive market environment demands a more systematic and strategic approach than ever before, informed by relevant data, rigorous analysis, and creative and critical thinking.
The mission of Vintage Economics, founded by Dr. Chris Bitter, is to provide wineries, growers, industry associations and service providers with insightful market research and analytics that will help position them for success in the new era for wine.
Vintage Economics publishes a series of reports delivering insights and analytics on the dynamic Pacific Northwest wine industry and provides customized metrics and competitive intelligence on the industry, market trends, and the region's wineries, brands and vineyards. The firm also offers research and advisory services including market research and strategic assessments, market analysis and forecasting, and data analytics.
See the Vintage Economics blog for commentary on topics of both local and national interest. Please contact Chris Bitter for additional information, to arrange a consultation, or to inquire about speaking engagements.
Christopher Bitter, PhD
Founder and Wine Economist
Dr. Chris Bitter, founder of Vintage Economics, is a wine economist with more than twenty years of experience in market analysis and applied economics. His research has been published in a variety of national and international publications including the Journal of Wine Economics and he has delivered presentations at wine industry conferences around the globe.
Chris left his academic position in 2016 to launch Vintage Economics with the goal of providing market analysis and intelligence to help position clients for success in a rapidly evolving and increasingly competitive market environment. He has completed consulting assignments for a variety of organizations including the Washington State Wine Commission and developed a series of analytical reports focused on the Pacific Northwest wine industry.
In addition to his analytical expertise, Chris is an accomplished speaker and will be delivering an address on Washington wine industry trends at the upcoming Washington Winegrowers Convention in February.
Prior to launching Vintages Economics, Chris spent seven years on the faculty with the University of Washington’s Runstad Center for Real Estate Studies where his teaching and research focused on market analysis and valuation. Chris has also held senior positions as an economist and market analyst in the private sector with RREEF, a prominent commercial real estate investment advisor, and the Dorchester Group, a boutique consulting firm focused on complex valuation-related assignments.
Chris holds a Doctorate from the University of Arizona in Economic Geography with a minor in Agricultural and Resource Economics and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan in Anthropology.
Reports and Metrics
Vintage Economics' Washington wine industry publications are designed to provide insightful market intelligence that supports better-informed and more strategic business decisions. Scroll down for report descriptions. We also provide customized metrics to meet customer's unique needs. Contact Chris Bitter for additional information.
The Washington Wine Industry Review & Outlook
2019 Edition Just Released!
This annual publication provides comprehensive coverage of Washington wine industry trends, including analysis of wine shipments broken down by sales channel and winery size category, winery performance benchmarks, winery and tasting room counts, winery rankings, and analysis of the state's wine and grape markets. It also interprets developments in the broader economy and wine market that will impact the industry in the year ahead.
The report provides wineries, growers and service providers with metrics and insights that can promote better-informed and more strategic business decisions, which are more important than ever in today's rapidly evolving and hyper-competitive marketplace. The content will also be valuable to outsiders seeking intelligence on the Washington wine industry's performance and growth potential.
Click here for a detailed description of the report content.
Regular Price: $500 / Small Business* Price: $400
Discounts are available on multiple report purchases (see below)
The Washington Winery Report
2019 Edition is Now Available
The Washington Winery Report provides shipment and production metrics for Washington wineries, including 2018 totals for all 971 licenses that were active as of year-end. More extensive metrics are delivered for the 282 wineries that shipped at least 1,000 cases, including shipments broken down by type (table wine, fortified wine, and cider) and channel (out-of-state, WA distributor, WA retail license, and direct-to-consumer) and four years of historic data on total shipments and production. It also includes a list of license changes and top 75 rankings based on total shipments, change in shipments, and net production.
The report represents the most comprehensive source of intelligence available on Washington wineries. Wineries can apply the metrics to benchmark performance relative to peers. The analytics will also be valuable to growers and service providers for monitoring the performance of current winery partners or developing new business leads, and to companies exploring M&A opportunities in Washington State.
Download a sample copy here.
Regular Price: $500 / Small Business* Price: $400
Discounts are available on multiple report purchases (see below)
Use the online store to purchase by credit card. If you would prefer to pay by check please call 206-981-6885 or use this form to place your order.
*less than $5 million in total annual revenue
The Washington Wine Shipment Report
The 4Q 2018 Issue is Now Available
The Washington Wine Shipment Report provides analysis and metrics on shipments of packaged wines by Washington wineries as well as commentary on broader economic and wine market trends. Metrics are broken down by sales channel (in state, out of state, DTC) and winery size class, and individual totals are given for the state's top 50 wineries.
The report is published 4X per year and offered as an annual subscription. New issues are delivered approximately five weeks after the end of each quarter.
The Wine Shipment Report enables subscribers to discern trend shifts early on, track the performance of Washington’s leading wineries, and situate Washington wine industry trends within a broader market perspective. Click the link to download a sample.
Price: $550 / Small Businesses: $450*
Discounts are available on multiple report purchases (see below)
Washington Report Bundles
Save up to $425 on Multiple Report Purchases
Save up to $200 when you purchase two Washington wine industry reports and $425 when you buy all three.Use the online store to purchase by credit card. You must place your order under the applicable "Bundled Pricing" heading to receive the discount.If you would prefer to pay by check, please call 206-981-6885 or use this form to place your order.Customized Metrics and Intelligence
Knowledge is Power
Leveraging its proprietary databases on the Pacific Northwest wine industry, Vintage Economics supplies customized metrics and intelligence on the region and its wineries, brands, and vineyards tailored to clients' unique needs.
Potential applications for wineries include performance benchmarking and competitive analysis. Please click on the link to download a sample winery peer comparison report. Vintage Economics also provides regional performance benchmarks and winery metrics to industry associations and competitive intelligence to investors and lenders seeking to identify and evaluate potential acquisition targets within the region.
Please contact Chris Bitter for additional details and pricing.
Research and Consulting Services
Market Research and Strategy
The wine industry is currently facing an array of disruptive challenges that pose both opportunities and threats. Vintage Economics can prepare strategic assessments to help clients navigate the evolving market landscape and identify the most promising opportunities and salient risks for their business.
Vintage Economics can also assist clients with market targeting - and help them to identify market areas and segments offering the best expansion potential. In addition, we can design and execute customized studies on topics and emerging trends ranging from demographic change to consumer behavior to competition with cannabis, to help clients better understand their strategic implications.
Market Analysis and Forecasting
Market analysis is an indispensable tool in today’s hyper-competitive economic environment. A well-informed market study can provide a sound foundation for a variety of business decisions including production and pricing, planting/replanting, or winery and vineyard development and acquisitions.
Vintage Economics delivers targeted market studies, including formal forecasts of supply, demand and prices, to help clients develop realistic financial assumptions and make better-informed and more strategic business decisions. We can also prepare competitive analyses to help clients understand their strengths and weaknesses and improve their competitive position in the marketplace.
Data Analytics
The proliferation of "big" data tracking wine consumers, reviews, and sales, along with the growing volume of internal data wineries are collecting through their own POS software and customer databases, has the potential to transform the wine industry similar to the way that "Money Ball" revolutionized the business of baseball.
Vintage Economics leverages its database and analytical expertise to unlock insights that enable clients to more effectively target consumers, define consumers preferences, optimize pricing, and improve operational efficiency.
The information contained in this report is proprietary. Purchasers may distribute the report only to employees of their company and board members and consultants for use only on projects specific to the purchaser’s company. No portion of the report may be reproduced or published in any form without prior written consent from Vintage Economics.