SND: Looking across the span of your illustrious career, what are the biggest changes you’ve seen in the market and how consumers relate to the wine category?

Dick: When I started 67 years ago, the industry was predominantly a dessert wine business. Over the years we have transformed it into a great sparkling and table wine business. I remember in 1961 learning that 63 million cases of wine were sold in America the previous year. 85% were California or other American dessert wines, 10% were domestic table wines, and 5% were imports. We have come a long way to approximately 320 million cases, made up mostly of table wines from California and other states along with imports. The U.S. is now the number-one wine market in the world.

I know everybody is reading about the many losses in the wine business, but I see it coming back in due time as we introduce the great wines of the world to members of Gen Z.

SND: What are your thoughts on the evolution of the on- and off-premise markets for wine in the U.S.?

Dick: Great brands are built on-premise. The industry needs larger wine lists, more by-the-glass options, and of course more sommeliers. At retail, in the early days the wine sections were small. There’s been a lot of progress, and today retailers are providing a vast assortment. But it’s up to our industry to continue moving forward, working together to have more expansive wine lists, more wine offered by-the-glass on premise, as well as more and larger floor displays in all off-premise accounts to greet the consumer.

SND: Southern Glazer’s, and before it Southern Wine & Spirits, has played a seminal role in expanding the distribution of wine in America. When you started with the company, what were your main objectives in building the business?

Dick: When Southern Wine & Spirits began it was one person, me, concentrating on wine. But with my past wine experience. I wanted to build our company in the wine distribution business to make it second to none and develop a distribution platform for worldwide brands. I had started my career in New Jersey with Gambarelli & Davitto Wine Company, then moved to Gallo in 1958. In 1969, I joined Southern as general sales manager of wine. The goal was to introduce American consumers to higher-quality wines from both California and Europe, and develop educational programs to grow the knowledge of our sales team.

SND: How did you leverage that education component to build the business?

Dick: So much of it is about education, and we’ve taken a leading role there. The Southern Wine & Spirits Beverage Management Center in the School of Hospitality Management at Florida International University in Miami was built in 1998. Then in 2011 it was renamed the Chaplin School of Hospitality & Tourism Management after our founder Harvey Chaplin.

The Chaplin School includes The Wine Spectator Restaurant & Laboratory, funded by Marvin Shanken, and The Mel Dick Wine Tower supported by the South Beach Wine & Food Festival. The festival was created by Southern Glazer’s chief communications officer Lee Brian Schrager and has honored the greats of the wine world along with great chefs, with approximately 60,000 people attending in recent years, all giving back to our industry. It has raised over $40 million to benefit the Chaplin School of Hospitality & Tourism Management.

Cindy Leonard, EVP and GM of the Fine Wine Division at Southern Glazer’s, leads a team with over 15,000 wine-certified employees. Our head of education, Eric Hemer, is a Master of Wine and Master Sommelier. He has a team of highly credentialed, dedicated wine education directors throughout the country. And Laura DePasquale, our SVP of Commercial Operations for Artisanal Wines, has worked with our Domaine & Estates divisions across the country to develop a community of wine professionals in key cities who create unique experiences with our winery and importer partners and the trade. Those are just a few of the ways in which we’re investing in the future.

SND: How do you see the future of the business overall?

Dick: Today the industry in America and worldwide is offering the greatest wines in history. I believe wine will continue to get stronger again as we introduce younger consumers to the category. As an industry we have to urge consumers in their travels to visit the great wineries of the world.

When I first joined the industry, I recall people saying wine education is a must for the future. Here we are years later, and we are still striving to continue to educate our young consumers. I call on our entire industry at all levels to stress educating the Gen Z population and those who are not enjoying wine as a part of their life, and introduce them to Champagne, sparkling wines, table wines, and dessert wines.

Recently our chairman, Harvey Chaplin, passed away at 95 years old; he drank wine every day. I’m 88 years old and shooting for 100, and I drink wine every day. The world has been enjoying wine for thousands of years. Wine offers a wealth of history and stories to explore, it’s something that brings people together over a bottle at lunch, at cocktail time, at dinner, and I feel certain it will continue to grow as we introduce the category to new generations.