The area will be a distinct stand-alone ‘village’ to showcase up to 70 wineries.
JK Marketing and The Wine Agency, which came up with the concept, say there will be a pre-selection process with criteria for inclusion based on quality and reputation to ensure participants are appropriate for the UK market.
The exhibitor feature will have staggered opening hours to prioritise the most relevant visitor audience and to control footfall. Early opening will ensure those UK importers already exhibiting will have priority access to Wines Unearthed before the fair opens each day.
Wineries participating will be invited to a workshop seminar on Sunday, May 17 – ‘The Road Map to Export to the UK’ – which will offer a toolkit covering pricing, distribution channels and marketing. This will be hosted by the well known UK wine writer Robert Joseph and will take place at Olympia from 4pm to 6pm.
There will also be a drinks reception on the Monday evening, exclusively for exhibitors within Wines Unearthed and Esoterica – the feature which showcases the portfolios of UK-based niche and micro-importers – to encourage networking between the two groups.
Additionally, on the Tuesday evening, Wines Unearthed exhibitors will be able to tour key retailers and on-trade outlets participating in London Wine Week, to gain insight into the UK wine trade.
Show director Ross Carter said: “We want to give these wineries a truly immersive experience; whilst the ultimate aim is to generate export leads, we also want them to come away with a much greater understanding of the UK trade at large – which, frankly, can be somewhat complicated.”
Wines Unearthed will be located in the Grand Hall of the fair, with distinct branding and full servicing. Each 3sqm pod will cost £1,500, which will include the workshop seminar, the drinks reception, and tie-in with London Wine Week.
Wineries interested in participating should apply by contacting: JK Marketing (wu@jkmarketing.co.uk or +44 (0) 1829 720130/+44 (0)7770 472717); or Bob Davidson at the London Wine Fair (r.davidson@hgluk.com or +44 20 7973 4661).
The 35th London Wine Fair will take place from Monday, May 18 to Wednesday 20 at Olympia.
