Episode Details

Welcome to Episode 2766 of the Italian Wine Podcast. In this episode, Barbara Fitzgerald sits down with Jill Sites to explore the fast-growing U.S. non-alcoholic wine market. Drawing on more than two decades of beverage industry experience, Jill shares practical insights into the opportunities, challenges, and future of the category for wineries looking to succeed in the U.S. market.

Key Takeaways:

• What every winery should know about the U.S. non-alcoholic wine market.
• How the non-alcoholic wine category is evolving and where the biggest opportunities lie.
• What separates the brands that succeed in the non-alcoholic space from those that struggle to gain traction.

More about the guest:

Jill Sites is the founder of Soak Up the Sites, a beverage strategy consultancy launched in 2024 that advises innovative beverage brands on sales, distribution, and growth strategy. Her clients have included Almave, Little Saints, Moth Drinks, St. Buena Vida, Just Enough Wines, and Ted Segers.

With more than 20 years of experience in the beverage industry, Jill has built a career spanning brand building, strategic sales, and market expansion. She most recently served as Fractional EVP of Sales at The Pathfinder Spirit, where she expanded national distribution from 5 to 41 states and led growth with major accounts including Whole Foods and Total Wine. Previously, as Vice President of Wholesale at Boisson, she built the company’s wholesale division and developed national retail partnerships for a portfolio of non-alcoholic brands.

Earlier in her career, Jill held leadership roles at Betty Buzz, Redwood Brands, and Breakthru Beverage Group, leading national brand strategies, sales initiatives, and growth across emerging craft and premium beverage categories.

Connect:

Website: http://www.soakupthesites.com/ 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/soakupthesites/ 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jillsites/ 

More about the host:

With a career of nearly two decades in the wine industry, Barbara Fitzgerald specializes in D2C marketing and business development. She's led roles from entry level to senior management, combining her extensive experience with data analysis, critical thinking and storytelling while driving revenue growth and brand recognition for California wineries. As a part of the 4th generation of an Italian-American family among the California wine industry pioneers, Barbara has spent her life around wine growing, production, marketing, distribution and hospitality. A Syracuse University graduate, she returned to California to gain diverse industry perspectives from a range of wineries.

As an Italian Wine Ambassador, she brings her expertise to the Italian wine market, known for its authenticity and consumer demand. Barbara now runs Apri La Creative Consulting, coaching wineries in Italy and the US to strategically develop their D2C channels in line with their brand values. Together with her husband, Barbara also owns and operates a boutique wine production company, and a small import company specializing in Italian wines to the US.

Connect:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/barbarajeanfitz/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/barbara-fitzgerald-iwa/

Website: https://www.aprilacreative.com/ 

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