WSN Announces Direct Delivery Program for Wineries

Offers wineries direct-to-consumer fulfillment in over 80% of the US market

San Francisco, CA, May 18, 2001 - Today WSN, an integrated marketing and technology company, announced a new alliance which will provide wineries an efficient and approved system for sending their products directly to consumers in most U.S. states. This alliance, called WorldShipNet, joins together leading companies in wine distribution to form a powerful, cost-efficient resource for fulfilling orders from "grape to glass." WorldShipNet works completely within state-approved, three-tier distribution, passing products from producer to wholesaler to retailer to consumer. Because of high operating efficiencies, WorldShipNet operates at lower costs, allowing wineries to maximize profits on direct sales to consumers.

The WorldShipNet alliance includes well-established players in the area of wine distribution. Lionstone International has 25 years of experience as an importer and national distributor. Over the past 12 years Lionstone has developed an extensive network of wholesalers around the country as well as unique expertise in federal and state compliance issues. With wholesale licenses in five states and non-resident licenses in 37 additional states, they are ideally positioned to reach all major markets for wine. Lo Spuntino, based in Sonoma, California, is a chain of low-cost retail facilities maintaining liquor licenses in major non-reciprocal states. They provide efficient handling and final delivery of products to the wineries' customers. Wineshipping.com and Vintage Logistics are two well-established operations providing complete front-end pickup, storage, packaging, and shipping services. These two companies have facilities in the Sonoma/Napa and Santa Barbara/Santa Maria regions, and together service both the northern and south-central areas of California.

We’ve been quietly perfecting our model with our selected partners for over a year now, specializing in opening up the three-tier markets for direct wine delivery in a legally approved system, says David Studdert, Director of Lo Spuntino. "With our retail bricks-and-mortar locations firmly in place, focusing on pure delivery fulfillment, Lo Spuntino’s approach provides affordable delivery in major markets. Our low-overhead gives producers and marketing entities margins and service competitive with their reciprocal-state operations."

Nick Lucca of Lionstone International adds, "with so many years of experience in providing national distribution for several major marketing companies and wine clubs, Lionstone has built good relationships with state liquor authorities and mastered the intricate details of federal and state compliance. Last year over 100,000 cases of wine moved via direct-sales through our wholesale network."

WSN also has strategic relationships with major marketing companies in the U.S., as well as fulfillment partners in select overseas markets, such as Europe, the UK, Japan, and Australia. WSN’s technology platform allows for seamless integration with most wineries and marketing companies, and has been instrumental in linking the critical partners in this alliance, and in bringing producers and consumers together.

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