President
CurrentPartner, Wine Country of North Plainfield (2004-2010)General Manager, Wine Country Management (2000-2004) Joined Wine Country Management as General Manager overseeing the sales, marketing and operations of seven stores in New Jersey with 60 employees, an in-store inventory of up to $5 million, and nearly $20 million in sales. Dealt directly with European and California growers and marketers in developing specialty SKU’s with higher margin yields. Acquired the North Plainfield store, then grossing over $2 million in sales, when Wine Country Management was being sold off. Expanded Wine Country Management from four to seven stores, all of which were successful profitable businesses. Grew sales in the standalone store by over 60% through aggressive marketing programs. Named the best wine shop in Central New Jersey in 2008 and in the top three in ‘06 and ‘07. Created various initiatives including in-store educational wine seminars and tastings, the development of controlled label and private label brands that increased margins and customer loyalty, and an e-commerce web site that generated first year sales of $415,000.
