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The purpose of this study is to investigate the range of explanations for why wine club members defect and move on.

This quantitative research study uses data from US wine consumers, gathered through an online survey of 399 former wine club members who had quit their membership in the recent past. Consistent with literature on customer churn rates in subscription markets, data are analyzed using descriptive statistics, factor analysis, hierarchical multiple regression and analysis of variance.

The results reported by respondents indicate that higher levels of perceived product quality, fair value in pricing, variety seeking and commitment to customer service at the beginning and at the end of a wine club membership lead to higher levels of customer satisfaction and a desire to recommend the club to others even after quitting. Though variety seeking is more commonplace among experienced wine drinkers, the good news for wineries is that consumers are more likely to recommend a wine club to others if at least a year has passed after they decided to quit.

The results provide implications for wine club managers seeking to improve wine club retention with suggested means for mitigating the rate of customer attrition.

This paper presents original research addressing a variety of reasons why wine club members quit. The extant research has found that factors such as product quality, fair pricing, service commitments and variety-seeking behavior affect members’ satisfaction with their wine club, as well as their desire to recommend it to others. The authors have attempted to combine all these factors into a single study to gain insight into wine club members’ switching behavior, and to find out what the wineries can do to improve customer loyalty.

This paper aims to investigate the antecedents that contribute to wine club members’ intention to remain in the wine club. Additionally, this study examines the potential departure and retention rates of wine club members, as well as provides insight into socio-demographic profiles and differences of wine club members.

This research relied on prior literature to build hypotheses that were tested using multiple linear regression analyses. An online questionnaire was used to recruit a total of 352 usable surveys from wine club members of a winery located in Fredericksburg, Texas. The researchers examined the predictive power of perceived service quality, winery wine club policy, customer loyalty and brand attitude on wine club members’ intention to remain in the wine club.

Customer loyalty and brand attitude were found to significantly predict wine club members’ intention to remain in the wine club, accounting for approximately 49 per cent of the variance explained. However, perceptions of service quality and winery wine club policy were not found to significantly predict wine club members’ intention to remain in the wine club. Additionally, household income was found to also positively correlate with wine club members’ intention to remain.

First, this research relied on self-reported measures. Second, wine club members from only one winery were surveyed, limited generalizability. Third, this paper specifically examined the antecedents of wine club members’ intention to remain and did not examine the reasons why wine club members leave. Ultimately, the main implication of this research is in demonstrating the importance of customer loyalty and brand attitude as antecedents of wine club members’ intention to remain in the wine club, as well as in providing insights as to the potential retention and churn rates of wine club members.

Prior research is yet to investigate the factors that predict wine club members’ intention to remain in the wine club. Thus, this paper provides evidence as to two powerful predictive antecedents that prevent wine club member churn. Furthermore, this research yields additional insights regarding wine consumer behavior within the context of the direct-to-consumer marketing channel.

The purpose of this empirical research is to identify the distinguishing operating characteristics of wineries that use what is alleged to be the most profitable channel of distribution for marketing wine in the USA: the wine club.

The research design entails the contrasting of the Web site-reflected operating features of wineries that support wine clubs with wineries that do not.

Support was found for the great majority of operating features identified in the literature as likely characterizing the operations of wineries with wine clubs. A notable exception concerns the lack of confirmation of hypotheses concerning “Wine 2.0” variables.

In the apparent pursuit of higher profits, owners and managers of wineries with wine clubs more frequently adopt operating features that expose them to objective competitive comparisons than do owners and managers with other wineries. The former are also more prone to advertise on their Web sites a variety of offers that collectively constitute a more valuable quid pro quo in their relationships with consumer buyers than appears to be the case with other wineries. Strategically, results demonstrate that a winery’s adoption of a wine club is not a part of an evolutionary process of wineries in general.

There has been no other published empirical research that concerned the identification of distinguishing operating features of wineries that use what has been argued to be the most profitable channel for marketing wine at retail in the USA: the wine club channel. Winery owners and managers will find particular value in the results and implications of the research.

The purpose of this study is to redirect wine producer marketing strategies in British Columbia (BC) to better market their wine to the next generation of local consumers and compete against foreign imports.

This study was conducted using representative data collected from BC wine consumers through a survey of 500 participants and subsequent focus groups to better understand and interpret the findings.

The findings confirm that the growth of wine sales in BC is driven by the Millennial generation. This generation shows some different wine purchasing and consumption behaviours than previous generations. BC wine producers compete against foreign imports by using their direct-to-consumer sales channel (s) and could also use their superior understanding for the next generation of wine consumers to better sell their local wines across multiple channels.

To onboard the next generation of Millennial consumers to BC wines, BC wine producers are advised to use the tasting room environment to learn more about their local consumers and also sell via other channels. Some gaps in consumer needs across generations are identified and BC producers are advised to further target this new consumer and meet the needs of the local Millennials better than the competition.

The study is unique in its location. BC wine producers have often used US research or anecdotal data from their own tasting rooms to inform marketing decisions. The researchers argue that this carries significant risk, especially as the next generation of BC wine consumers displays different purchasing behaviours than those reported in US research.

Wine is widely regarded as a ‘complicated’ product and for the majority of consumers the purchasing of wine in the retail situation evokes considerable risk. Marketers are therefore constantly and increasingly trying to demystify wine in order to reduce the perceived risk levels of consumers in the purchase situation. Most previous research in the area of perceived risk literature tended to focus on the concept of risk and its measurement rather than on risk‐reduction. This study examined the preferred risk‐reduction strategies (RRS) employed by identified wine‐related lifestyle segments in the Australian wine market and linked these strategies to the wine retail environment. Relying on favourite brands or so‐called ‘safe brand’ buying was found to rank highest as a risk reduction strategy in the commercial (under $15 per bottle) and premium‐to super‐premium ($15‐$25) price ranges while the opportunity to try before buying ranked highest in the ultra‐premium ($25) price range. The results obtained have major implications for retailers and form the foundation for a competitive advantage. It also indicates the direction for future research in this strategically important area of wine consumer behaviour.

Confucian philosophy emphasizes gender roles that place significant restrictions on the consumption of non-traditional products. The authors use wine to advance our understanding of how South Korean female consumers have established a new female gender role and identity by adopting new communities that allow non-traditional consumption while still accepting gender roles. This paper aims to examine how South Korean female consumers create a unique consumption culture with respect to wine consumption.

A hermeneutic approach was adopted to understand what motivates South Korean female consumers to join a wine consumption community and their perceptions about consuming wine. Researchers conducted 26 semi-structured face-to-face interviews that ranged from 45 to 120 min, with an average duration of 1 h.

The results of the study suggest that wine can be a medium for emancipating women from traditional gender roles and social images of women embedded in South Korean society that call for women to sacrifice themselves for their families. In addition, the study’s findings suggest that Western wine marketers need to understand the power of wine consumption communities that are a unique consumption ritual among South Korean female wine consumers.

South Korean female respondents drink wine as both a way to seek pleasure through a Western alcoholic beverage and to consume and experience Western culture and lifestyles. However, South Korean female respondents tend to drink wine within consumption communities, which are a powerful consumption ritual in South Korea. In other words, although South Korean female respondents consume wine to experience and learn about Western culture and lifestyles, they have entirely not abandoned their traditional consumption rituals.

The purpose of this research is to examine gender differences in information search procedures and selection criteria relative to purchase situation and social and financial risk aversion.

An online questionnaire was completed by 497 males and 877 females in the USA. A total of 88 percent of the respondents stated that they drank wine at least once per week. Participants were obtained by sending e‐mails to customer lists provided by wine‐related organizations.

Findings suggest that, if a consumer is unsure about making a wine selection, women are more apt than men to seek information from store personnel, a server, sommelier, or winery personnel. Labels and shelf tags are also significantly more important for women. While winery region is very important to both men and women, women rely on medals and awards more than men.

Consumers who are not necessarily comfortable with using the internet would not have had an opportunity to participate in this study.

The differences by gender in the importance of and the usage of various information sources could help retailers prioritize their communication methods in US stores. Store personnel, servers, sommeliers, and winery personnel should be well‐prepared to answer questions and make recommendations.

Women buy 80 percent of the wine sold in the USA. This study helps retailers understand their preferences and how to assist them more effectively in their purchase decisions.

Managing potential customers' perception of risk is essential to successful Internet wine retailing. If on‐line providers can minimise risk thus instilling a level of trust, then the initiation of an on‐line purchasing relationship can commence. This paper reviews the literature surrounding trust and risk and describes early findings of the elements of trust based on recent primary research. In addition, the paper develops an illustrative framework showing the links between the elements of trust and the parameters of risk for on‐line wine purchasing. Finally, the paper offers recommendations to on‐line wine providers to encourage trust, and these are outlined under the three discrete functions of an on‐line provider: site design, marketing and the e‐tailing function, on‐line wine purchasing. Finally, the paper offers recommendations to on‐line wine providers to encourage trust, and these are outlined under the three discrete functions of an on‐line provider: site design, marketing and the e‐tailing function.

The purpose of this research is to determine if positive affect, in combination with product quality, fair pricing, and customer‐focused operations leads to higher levels of customer satisfaction and repurchase intentions.

A total of 89 undergraduate and graduate business students, ages 23 to 59, each visited a winery they had never visited before. Afterward they filled out a questionnaire evaluating the winery on product quality, fair pricing, feelings of commitment towards the winery, positive emotions felt, preference for wine, overall customer satisfaction, and repurchase intentions. Data were analyzed using multiple regression. Repurchase behavior was the dependent variable.

Product quality, positive emotions felt, preference for wine, customer commitment, and fair pricing were all significant predictors of repurchase intentions.

The findings are based on a small sample of 89 business students. Future research could replicate this study with larger samples of both marginal and core wine drinkers.

The results of this research empirically support the anecdotal evidence that through positive tasting room experiences, wineries can cultivate relationships with customers that build commitment and loyalty. The quality of the wine is not everything. Customers have many choices. The total experience at the winery, one in which the customer feels a sense of belonging and camaraderie and in which the experience is fun or exciting, contributes to repurchase intentions.

This is the first time that customer emotions have been measured after a tasting room visit and then tested for their relationship with repurchase intentions.