Menlo-Magazine-Fall-2014

Students Learn Business Savvy from Benanti Winery CEOTop: Salvino Benanti, CEO of Benanti Winery in Mount Etna, Italy (center) and his wine distributor Cristian Valbruzzoli were greeted by Italianstudents, left to right, Cristofari Pietro and Filippo Clemente, Finance Professor Dr. Soumen De, Italian student, Massimiliano Genta, Ashley Diamondand Zara Matevosyan. Bottom: The Benanti Winery, Professor Ron Kovas, Salvino Benanti and his brother Antonio Benanti.Professor Ron Kovas’ entrepreneurship capstone class, Launchinga Venture, recently welcomed guest speaker SalvinoBenanti, CEO of Benanti Winery in Mount Etna, Italy. In hispresentation titled, “Re-launching a Venture,” Benanti definedissues that he and his brother Antonio faced when they inheritedBenanti Winery, a business that was started in 1988 by their father,Giuseppe Benanti who has a passion for fine wine.Salvino reviewed their decisions on restructuring; dealing with theeconomic downturn in Italy; focusing on international markets;coming to terms with the credit crunch, and the absence of aventure capital/private equity culture.The Benanti brothers were educated in Switzerland and Londonwhere they spent many years working in finance before theyjoined their father’s winemaking business.When Giuseppe Benanti began the wine business, the grapesgrown in the area were considered to be “obscure” grapes, sincethey weren’t grown elsewhere and the Etna Appellation was notwell-known. The 11,000 foot Mount Etna is an active volcano nearthe sea in Sicily, Italy. The volcanic soil found there is similar to thesoil found in the Napa and Sonoma wine country.Giuseppe Benanti is credited with being the pioneer of winemakingon Mount Etna. Since the start of Benanti, many small vineyardshave developed in Etna because of their regional branding for aglobal market. The Benanti Winery possesses international notorietyand has won numerous awards for their wine, including the2007 Italian Winery of the Year, and a 2012 Top 100 Winery in theUSA. Their wines are mentioned in top trade publications such asDecanter, Wine & Spirits, Wine Spectator, and Wine Enthusiast.Since joining the winery in 2012, Salvino and Antonio Benanti haveimplemented a successful re-launch strategy. Focusing on theircore Etna wines, they generated cash for infrastructure and workingcapital; reduced the supply chain complexity in a slow movingdomestic market; hired a distributor instead of managing a salesforce; employed an enthusiastic younger generation; invested ininternational sales expansion activities; and created new revenuelines to increase liquidity. Compared to 2012, in 2014 their salesare up 50% and their exports are up 100%. The consensus withinthe global wine world is that under the supervision of Salvino andAntonio, the Benanti wines have retained exactly the same classic,elegant style that has always been at the heart of their fatherGiuseppe’s approach to winemaking.“My father’s good idea at Benanti Winery has never changed,” saidSalvino. “It’s the change in our team that has allowed the wineryto become a viable opportunity. My advice to others in the samesituation is don’t be afraid to make decisions. Make your ventureyour only job, and don’t attempt to juggle it with other careers.Have a clear strategy and tell the world what you’re doing.”MENLO COLLEGE 25