Harpers Wine & Spirit Trade News

Laithwaites leans into recycled glass

Published: 27 July, 2022

Online retailer Laithwaites has expanded its first recycled glass range following better-than-expected initial sales.

Long read: Organic wine, climate crisis and what it means for brand identity

Published: 04 November, 2021

With COP26 pressing the urgency for action on climate crisis, Denomination’s CEO Rowena Curlewis stresses the need for producers to build change into their business strategies and examines what this means for packaging and identity.

Soapbox: Why 2021’s skills shortage could be the best thing to happen to the hospitality industry

Published: 26 October, 2021

For many workers in hospitality, it’s not only low pay, but aggression and isolation that are the norm. It’s time to change things, says Simon King, former operations director for Gordon Ramsay Group and co-owner of new Surrey gastropub The Victoria Oxshott.

Petrol and driver shortages impact UK supply

Published: 28 September, 2021

A perfect storm of rising transport costs, a shortage of freight capacity and a severe lack of HGV drivers is putting increasing pressure on the UK’s drink distribution network.

Scottish vaccine passport plan ‘threat hanging over the whole hospitality industry’

Published: 02 September, 2021

Industry bodies have voiced their concern following the Scottich government’s announcement yesterday that vaccine passports will be required for entry to nightclubs and many large events in the country from later this month.

Unsustainable future

Published: 16 August, 2021

Following the successful lobbying of government to ditch the much-derided and unnecessary VI-1 forms for wine imports, trade voices are gearing up for another battle, this time concerning organic wines.

Jerry Lockspeiser: Seeing the big picture is more essential than ever

Published: 22 July, 2021

Many decades ago, I studied economics at university. The difference between theory and practice bothered me. All too often the first didn’t seem to describe the latter, let alone explain it. The problem was usually people – they simply didn’t behave as the theory said they should.

Guy Woodward: Why we need underdogs

Published: 18 May, 2021

The European Super League was always doomed to failure. Think about it from a wine perspective. It would be like a region – in France, say – initiating a system whereby its châteaux were ranked purely on the basis of how much their wines cost, maybe put into mini ‘divisions’, and then this classification being set in stone in perpetuity, regardless of any change in quality on the part of either the incumbents’ wines or those of any would-be challengers. Surely it would never last…

Diversity talk urges wine industry to own up to its privilege

Published: 22 October, 2020

Wine education to diploma level costs upwards of £10,000 – a number which has been used to highlight the issues involved in making the wine industry a more diverse and inclusive place.

Soapbox: Five steps toward wine industry diversity

Published: 05 August, 2020

Black wine professional Magnavai Janjo urges the trade to swap discomfort for progressive conversation and sustainable steps towards greater inclusivity.

Lanchester goes digital with in-venue ordering platform

Published: 09 July, 2020

Lanchester Wines has unveiled its newest technological innovation – an online order and pay tool to help on-trade venues re-open while observing social distancing rules.

"Hammer blow" to on-trade from Covid-19, report predicts

Published: 03 June, 2020

Drinking occasions have "been dealt a hammer blow” a new report into the impact of the Covid-19 crisis on consumer markets has concluded.

All-star panel talks how to deal with pandemic in restaurant environment

Published: 28 May, 2020

Building trust around social distancing rules will be the major challenge for restaurants looking to relaunch their businesses after lockdown eases, a leading on-trade panel has agreed.

Lawyers urge businesses to “read the fine print” over Job Retention Scheme

Published: 25 March, 2020

Legal advice has been issued to drinks businesses who are now looking to rely on the government’s promise to cover 80% of salaries (up to a limit of £2,500) a month to furloughed members of staff during the current coronavirus (Covid-19) health crisis.