Marketing channels for small wineries: a Means-End Chain approach

The wine sector in Catalonia (Spain) is clearly dual: there are some big companies that contrast with the many small wineries that face difficulties to remain profitable. For these wineries, gaining access to the markets is of paramount importance. Our work explores the distributor's main business motivations, and the possibilities to pursue them in their business relationships with the wineries. To tackle this issue, we carried out a vertical differentiation of the service "wine supply" resorting to the Means-End Chain approach. Results show that a trustful relationship with the winery is the main central issue for wine distributors, while wine quality is the winery's key attribute. Furthermore, the winery's own will to access the market and to develop marketing strategies is also of great importance for the wine distributor.