Goosecross Cellars Focuses on Direct Marketing Strategy

Reflects a Rising Trend Among Premium California Wineries

Yountville, CA, April 24, 2002 - Goosecross Cellars, one of the premium wineries in the heart of California's Napa Valley, announced today a shift in its core business focus towards a greater emphasis on direct sales. The winery announced a number of consumer-focused initiatives, including a recently improved eCommerce Web shop, greater focus on consumer direct sales, free wine tasting classes at the winery, and a tight-knit relationship with WorldShipNet for fulfillment needs.

"We have great respect for traditional channels," said David Topper, President of Goosecross. "Restaurants, retailers and distributors will continue to play a key role in our business. The issue for us is not avoiding traditional channels, but finding innovative and effective ways to strengthen them. Since September 11th and the stalling economy which preceded that event, our restaurant business has suffered significantly, and the best way for us to help ensure that those sales continue to grow is to establish strong relationships with consumers. We need these direct relationships to help fuel our overall growth and provide enduring leverage in other channels." Prior to September 11th approximately 60% of Goosecross' revenue was from direct sales. Today, over 87% of revenue comes from direct sales with 53% of total cases sold to distributors, restaurants, and other traditional channels.

Over a year ago, the WorldShipNet system provided the fundamental legal foundation required by Goosecross to make this shift in leveraged marketing possible. WorldShipNet is an alliance of companies that enables wineries to expand their tasting room, wine club, and Internet sales to customers in most US states, without violating Federal and state laws constraining interstate shipping. Goosecross was an early adopter of the system, and utilizes WorldShipNet for all its consumer shipments to non-reciprocal states. "WorldShipNet has been critical in this effort," Topper said. "They have an established fulfillment infrastructure in each state, and they understand that the relationship with our customers is paramount for us to succeed at Goosecross." Goosecross is one of many California wineries expanding their sales through WorldShipNet's system. "WorldShipNet is not designed to replace traditional distribution," Topper added, "but as an additional channel for expanding markets and building solid relationships with our customers, they're a welcome and necessary part of the equation." Topper added that in addition to building friendly relationships with customers, his focus is very simple: producing consistently high quality wines, providing unparalleled service, and creating an enjoyable shopping experience which allows expeditious and legal transmission of orders through the system.

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