Thanks to Young Kiwi Entrepreneur, Finding the Perfect Wine for Any Occasion just got Easier – Press release

New Zealand produces some of the world’s finest wines and picturesque wineries. For the discerning connoisseur and casual drinker alike, the information included on wine bottles is often not enough to make an informed purchase. Young entrepreneur and wine enthusiast Alex Harper is part of a new breed of digital savvy kiwi determined to make their ideas reality.

The NZ Wine App mobile application allows wine buyers and drinkers to access detailed wine tasting information. By scanning the barcode of a wine, users will get instant access to the tasting notes, food matches, technical information and more, plus the ability to engage in reviews on that wine with the public, save that wine to their favourites list, and buy that wine by the bottle or case right there and then. There are many other interactive aspects to NZ Wine App, including a “Top Ten Most Popular Wines” page which will get updated each month with the top 10 “favourited” wines on the app, a “Search” page where users can search things like the meal they are about to cook or eat for example, and find all the wines that are recommended with that meal, and a “Specials” page where wineries and wine retailers can advertise wine sales they have on.

Says Alex “Working in the wine industry and talking to wine buyers, it became clear to me there was a definite need for a smartphone application that provides instantly accessible information. Up until now, no one has built a mobile application that bridges the gap between the needs of wineries and consumers. Wineries have tried to solve this problem by using QR codes – which lead the user to their website, this is a very timely exercise as websites do not load quickly on a cellphone and are very difficult to navigate. As the wines on NZ Wine App are all under one hub, no matter what wine the user scans or searches for, they will be given instant information, and then have the ability to engage in reviews on that wine with the public, add that wine to their favourites list for future reference, or buy that wine by the case or bottle then and there.“

To ensure all information in the application is current; Alex has created a web based system through which wineries can add their new season wines, remove wines no longer sold and update information regarding things like awards on the wines. They also have the ability to read the public reviews on their wines, and see how many times each wine has been “favourited” which is fantastic market research for the wineries!

“The ultimate goal is to allow anyone from the casual drinker to the discerning connoisseur to easily pick the perfect wine for the occasion or their taste.”

Wineries have been quick to jump on board with a significant number of New Zealands top brands already adding their selection to the application.

Deon Metcalf, Director of Mobile Apps says “Although we mostly talk with larger companies that want to stay one step ahead of their competition using mobile apps to engage their customers, there has been a steady increase in the number of young entrepreneurs contacting us with great ideas and ready to take a chance and fill a needed gap in the market.”

“Smartphone devices are becoming smaller, faster and include more features. Generation Y, having grown up with computers naturally have a good sense of the opportunities these innovations offer.”

ENDS

Key Messages

• Wine buyers can scan wine barcodes for instant access to detailed wine information.
• Users can favourite and rate wines for future reference.
• Wineries that haven’t already are encouraged to contact Alex for a login to ensure customers can access their Wine range.

Smartphones

• Smartphone usage increased from 44% in 2012 to 54% in 2013.
• 73 % of mobile phone users between 18 – 23 years use a smartphone.
• 91% of smartphones access the internet every day
• 30% of smartphone users use their device for online shopping.

Contact:

Email: alex@nzwineapp.co.nz

Ph: 0274647135

Biography:

My names Alex Harper. I’m 23. I grew up in Hawkes Bay. I went to university in Dunedin and graduated last year with a Bcom marjoring in Marketing and a minor in Design. I now live in Auckland and work for Morton Estate Wines as their Marketing assistant and Graphic Designer. I’ve been working for Morton since Febuary 2013. I’ve always been very entrepenurial, while at university I ran my own window cleaning business, which I operated for the previous two summers on university holiday. This consisted of making hundreds of phone calls and delivering flyers to fill up my calendar and build my own client base of the owners of private homes and businesses. Then the next year following up with previous customers and finding more to produce more business. Having left university and now working full time, I still get calls from people asking me to clean their windows as “no one else in Hawke’s Bay does a better job”.

The day I started at Morton Estate and my boss told me how important it was to have all the tasting notes and other information on the wines printed and available for customers I instantly realised ‘there’s an easier way of doing this’. Once I came up with the idea for the app I designed screenshots for it and approached a number of family friends in the wine industry with the idea. After getting 100% positive feedback I went ahead with it. Getting wineries on board has taken a lot of cold calling, but the feedback from the wineries that have viewed the app has been fantastic! The New Zealand Winegrowers Association also love NZ Wine App and they did a write up on the app in their latest newsletter. Our long term goal is to have every single wine in New Zealand on NZ Wine App, and for NZ Wine App to be the number one spot for Kiwi’s to find information on wines.

Below is a link to our website, which explains how the app work, plus a 2 minute video of NZ Wine App in action: