Insight - marketing by beverage distributor The Vance Company

In any discussion of niche marketing, Joe Vance's name has to come up fairly near the top. The Vance Company, based in Burlingame south of San Francisco, carries a wide variety of products that are just too small or too specialized for major distributors or marketers.

"I'm the last alternative for some products in Northern California," Vance said during a recent interview. Because Vance deals in all of the licensed beverages - beer, wine and spirits - he is certainly one of the most knowledgeable people in California about the licensed beverage market.

Vance, who has a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill and an MBA in marketing from the University of Washington in Seattle, got his start - like so many of today's wine marketers, with the Gallo Wine Company in the 1970s as a management trainee.

From Gallo, Vance went to Monsieur Henri Wines Ltd., where he was responsible for all the western states except Southern California and Hawaii. Among other products included in his portfolio was Yago Sangria, the largest imported wine brand in the mid-1970s, according to Vance.

In the early 1980s, Vance was responsible for increasing the sales of a'Sante mineral water by a factor of five to over one million cases, and for the roll-out of "Wine Time" wine coolers. In 1987, he accomplished the regional roll-out and major chain distribution of Rolling Rock beer in the western states and from 1980 to 1990 was national sales manager for Sapporo beer, which he took to 1.6 million cases and the 14th largest imported beer brand in the U.S. by 1989.

One of Vance's most recent niche projects is Yen Sum, a Ginseng beer. Yen Sum is a start up venture and Vance designed, implemented and produced sales and marketing plans and materials, trained salesmen and set up a distribution network for the product. He also has fiscal responsibility for the brand.

Even though many of Vance's products are marginal when considered in light of the national market, he gives full service, including:

* Brand introduction and turnarounds;

* Sales and marketing plans, including price structuring, sales forecasts and sales targets and objectives;

* Statewide distribution for beer, wine and spirits and direct and alternative distribution;

* Distribution management, including programming, targets and goals, reviews, sales training and meetings and workalongs;

* Retail trade, including chain store presentations, warehouse and key account sales, both on and off premise and draft accounts.

Vance also can handle test marketing, conventions and trade shows, reports, sales and marketing reports and recommendations.

Truly a one-man band, Vance admitted that working the niches was not always the easiest thing to do. "Sometimes I wish I weren't so diversified. No one can accuse me of having all my eggs in one basket, that's for sure. But I do feel there is a real need for what I do," he said. "I get calls constantly from people with products that don't fit into the mainstream. I am very optimistic about the small specialty items. It is becoming apparent that there is a real need for what I am doing in the wine, beer and spirits industries," he said.

Vance has organized his company into what he calls a "double feature" operation. He has a wholesale license but also acts as a broker. Occasionally, he acts as wholesaler for some of the products he brokers. The wholesale business is called Conquistador Imports and the brokerage firm is The Vance Company. He also operates as Pacific Sales and Imports. Vance covers some items statewide, but his primary territory is Northern California and Nevada.

Vance, who handles a number of top-of-the-line microbrews, both national and international, believes that the market is reaching saturation. "There was a real window into the market until about a year ago. I think a big shakeout is about due. There are so many on the market, it's difficult to keep them all straight."

In spirits, Vance said that tequila was still growing right now, but, at the same time, he has been getting more turn-downs. "A lot of restaurants have full shelves. We are not getting turnarounds as fast as hoped," he added.

When Vance isn't marketing specialty items like Pisco spirits from South America or honey beer from Ethiopia, he finds time for a few rounds of golf, which he shoots with an 11 handicap.

Resources:

The Vance Company, 533 Airport Blvd., #386, Burlingame, Calif. 94010; tel: (415) 343-2711; fax: (415) 343-4607.

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