Independents - Harpers Wine & Spirit Trade News

Oxford Wine Company to open new premises in its hometown

Published: 22 February, 2017

The Oxford Wine Company is poised to open a retail shop in the centre of Oxford as part of a new strategy to focus on its home area.

Marginal returns: How to manage those post-Brexit increases

Published: 17 February, 2017

According to some leading UK independent wine merchants, the cost of wine to their businesses has increased by anything from 10% to 16% since June's European referendum vote, depending on supplier.

Stand up, then SITT

Published: 15 February, 2017

SITT, the Specialist Importers Trade Tasting, which aims to give a platform to independent merchants and specialist importers is returning to the UK next month - this year as part of Harpers' own event portfolio.

Indies: Calm before the storm?

Published: 07 February, 2017

Christmas appears to have arrived on time and with good cheer for many independent merchants, with an early survey of businesses suggesting that sales were generally comfortably up on last year's festive period.

Wines of Germany returns to LWF 2017 as fair continues its evolution

Published: 06 February, 2017

London's biggest wine tasting event is welcoming another old face when it returns in May.

Desoutter & James coming to SITT

Published: 06 February, 2017

Spanish specialists Desoutter & James are debuting at Harpers' SITT event later this month.

Virtues of independence

Published: 22 December, 2016

The independent sector continues to carve its own footprint, increasingly punching above its weight

Bird in Hand joins Seckford for UK partnership

Published: 09 December, 2016

Australian producer Bird in Hand has appointed New World specialists Seckford Agencies to ramp up distribution of their brand across the UK.

Insights: Is it the end of the traditional wine shops?

Published: 13 January, 2016

As the competition hots up in independent retail with the introduction of more and more hybrid venues, could this spell the end for the traditional wine shop? Nigel Huddleston investigates

Best of British: we celebrate Top Merchants around the country

Published: 10 March, 2015

In part two of our Best of British feature, Harpers takes a look at three more independent wine merchants to keep your eyes on.

Chiefs of the Week: the UK's independent wine merchants

Published: 06 March, 2015

For over the last month Harpers has been celebrating and putting the spotlight on the work independent wine merchants do and the growing importance they have on the drinks industry as part of our March for the Independents campaign.

March for Indies: 10 ways to boost sales and business through Twitter

Published: 25 February, 2015

Twittter is no longer just a way to communicate, keep in touch and build your audience, it can also really help to drive sales and bring new and existing customers to your business.

March for Independents: Action Week 4 offers data and insights to help drive profits

Published: 23 February, 2015

As we enter the final Action Week of the March for the Independents campaign we turn the spotlight on the market trends, insights and data that will help independent wine merchants ensure they have the rights wines and spirits on shelf at the right price.

March for Independents: 13 ways for retailers to keep on top of business law

Published: 20 February, 2015

Stephen Forward of the independent wine merchant business, Essentially Wine, gives a personal insight into how retailers like himself get on top of all the small business regulation.

March for Independents: new online and EU labelling regulations for merchants

Published: 18 February, 2015

There is a whole raft of legislation that retailers need to be on top to make sure they are on top what are termed as "distance sales", wine lawyer Andrew Park advises.

March for Independents: keep on top of waste packaging and avoid big fines

Published: 17 February, 2015

Today as part of the March for the Independents campaign we turn the spotlight on waste packaging. Not the most glamorous of topics but if you are an independent wine merchant, importing or distributing wine then you need to make sure you are compliant with your recycling oblilgations or risk potentially crippling fines.

MPs back Drop the Duty campaign by taking trade's duty call to the Chancellor

Published: 11 February, 2015

MPs across the country are starting to respond to independent wine merchants and members of the wider wine and spirits industry who have contacted them through the Drop the Duty campaign calling on them to lobby the Chancellor for a 2% duty cut in the March Budget.

Cambridge Wine's Hal Wilson urges independents to lobby their MP for duty cut

Published: 10 February, 2015

Following yesterday's call by Harpers to independent wine merchants to play their part in the industry wide campaign to convince the Chancellor to issue a duty cut on wine and spirits in his March Budget, leading independent Hal Wilson of Cambridge Wine Merchants today explains why he has personally lobbied his local MP, the Liberal Democrat Julian Huppert, and urges other merchants to do the same.

Action Week 2: Call to indies to lobby local MP and media for a Drop in Duty

Published: 09 February, 2015

Harpers is today calling on independent wine merchants across the UK to lobby both their MP and local media to back the Drop the Duty campaign and help raise the profile of their business on this key business issue.

Profile: Bottle Apostle

Published: 06 February, 2015

Bottle Apostle is one of the new breed of independent wine merchants hitting well-heeled high streets across the country. Both cool and quirky, it has its sights set on young and affluent customers, as Helen Arnold discovers