October 13th, 2015 – t turns out that food and wine aren’t the only successful combination of Italian style, because the promotion of Italian wine in China has taken on a new challenge, joining forces with the best of the Italian fashion industry. “Drink and dress” takes place on October 14, with 12 wineries of the Vino Consorzio and the most renowned brands in fashion and footwear make their debut side by side in the House of Roosevelt. Organized by the Consorzio Italia del Vino and the Italian Trade Agency of Shanghai, in partnership with Milano Unica, Ente Moda Italy and the Italian Fashion System, “Drink and dress” is part of the three-year project ‘Italy in China’. The program wants to promote Italian wine (with an investment of €1.3 million) supported by the two largest associations of the private sector: Italia del Vino and Istituto Grandi Marchi. In the first 8 months of 2015, the positioning of Italian wine in China is still marked by lights and shadows. According to the latest calculations by WineMonitor / Nomisma, Italy grows less than the rest of the world, with still wine bottled imports at +26.4% compared to the +60.6% in total imports (January-August 2015). According to Andrea Sartori, President of the Consortium Italia del Vino, “in China from 2000 to 2014, wine consumption over total alcohol consumption has more than tripled: from 5.1% to a share of 15.8%. The incidence of imported wines on Chinese domestic consumption, which reached 19% in 2014 compared to the 3.2% registered in 2000, indicates that Italian wine can make the most of attractive growth prospects if it is able to intercept new trends in the contamination of local customs with Western trends. A change of strategy is thus necessary – concluded Sartori – also in view of the new scenarios that could further complicate our position in this market, such as the free trade agreement between Australia and China that includes a gradual reduction of duties starting this year until 2019. This is why bringing in Italian fashion could be a key lever to conquer this market.” (Red)
