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Please join us on Tuesday, June 9 for our 2026 Direct-to-Consumer Wine Report virtual event — a live discussion grounded in data from 450 US wineries.
This year's findings reveal an industry that continues to be bifurcated. While a segment of wineries report year-over-year improvement, others report declining visitation, lower average transaction values and accelerating wine club attrition. Our panel of wine industry leaders will examine those pressures directly and identify the strategies separating top-quartile performers from the rest.
This year’s topics include:
· Finding an equilibrium: How the industry is responding to structural oversupply and right sizing inventory to match future demand. As inventory continues to stack up, how do wineries stay proactive in managing existing inventory and future needs.
· Tasting room economics: What drops in average standard tasting fees and reserve tasting fees signal about future opportunities.
· Wine club performance: How top performers are deepening member relationships through customization and experience-based benefits.
· Bright spots: Our industry experts will provide real-life examples of best practices and top strategies that top quartile performers are demonstrating.
Our survey results are based on input from wineries across the US, including respondents in all of the top AVAs. We’ve been providing analysis on the US wine industry for more than 30 years, spending more than a decade producing national direct-to-consumer winery performance benchmarks.
Questions?
Please email Courtney McClintock at courtney.mcclintock@firstcitizens.com.
Ed Feuchuk is a marketer and mistake maker with nearly 20 years of experience building innovative DTC wine brands. As the General Manager for Farm Collective Napa Valley, Ed has led creative, strategic, and technical initiatives for brands like Tank Garage Winery, James Cole Winery, Regusci Winery, and T-Vine Winery. With a passion for authentic experiences and renegade marketing, Ed and his work have been featured in the San Francisco Chronicle, the New York Times, and Wine Spectator.
Barbara Gorder is a seasoned creative architect and marketing strategist with over 30 years of experience building some of the world’s most iconic brands. As the President of Undisclosed Location (UNLO), a virtual marketing services firm she founded in 2009, Barbara pioneered a remote, bespoke agency model long before it became the industry standard. By assembling “dream teams” of top-tier talent tailored to each client’s specific needs, she delivers high-level strategy, branding, and design that transcends geographic boundaries.
Barbara’s career began in the creative trenches of Chicago at global powerhouses Leo Burnett and DDB. There, she crafted award-winning integrated campaigns for giants like Procter & Gamble, Hallmark, General Motors, and Reebok. Her portfolio is distinguished by its versatility—spanning Tech, CPG, and Luxury—and has earned the industry’s highest honors, including a Cannes Gold Lion, One Show Gold Pencils, and D&AD, Effie, and Clio awards.
Beyond her agency work, Barbara is a definitive voice in the wine industry. For over 15 years, she has been a driving force behind the DTC Wine Symposium and recently stepped into the role of Managing Partner. Her leadership has helped transform the Direct-to-Consumer channel into a $4B powerhouse for US wineries, advocating for consumer choice and raising funds for Free the Grapes!
A Northwestern University graduate, Barbara balances professional rigor with a deep commitment to philanthropy, supporting North Bay nonprofits through the Farley Family Charitable Trust. When she isn’t shaping brand narratives or curating national conferences, she’s hiking the trails of Sonoma Mountain or enjoying the vineyards of Los Chamizal with her dog, Buck, and her husband, Tim.
Rob McMillan is one of the top wine business analysts in the United States and the author of Silicon Valley Bank’s highly regarded annual State of the Wine Industry Report. With decades of experience researching the wine business, his views are sought after and trusted by winery owners, journalists, entrepreneurs, and investors.
He is a prominent speaker, domestically and internationally, and he is extensively quoted in national, regional, and trade press. He has also been named several times as one of the Top 50 Most Influential People in the US wine industry.
Rob’s banking career has spanned 35-plus years — more than 25 with Silicon Valley Bank. In that time, he has held positions of increasing responsibility, including division manager of the Wine Group, executive manager of the bank’s Commercial Division and several years as a member of Silicon Valley Bank’s Managing Committee.
He is currently responsible for establishing new winery relationships and offers private management presentations and strategic consulting to the bank’s clients across the portfolio.
Rob received a bachelor’s degree in finance/economics from Sacramento State University and an MBA from Santa Clara University’s Leavey School of Business. He has served on boards in diverse industries and continues to be an advisor to wineries and industry associations across the wine business.
Rob is a father of five. He enjoys the outdoors, travel and golf and takes any opportunity to play percussion and drums in live settings.
The views expressed are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company or any of its affiliates. Companies listed are independent third parties and are not affiliated with First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company and Silicon Valley Bank. All third-party trademarks (including logos, trade names, service marks, and icons) referenced herein remain the property of their respective owners.
Silicon Valley Bank is not selling or distributing wine or wine-related products. Silicon Valley Bank ("SVB"), as a division of First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company, provides banking and financial services, along with industry insights to vineyards and wineries. SVB is not responsible for (or a participant in) the sales of any wineries’ products in any fashion or manner and makes no representations that any promotion or sales of alcoholic beverages will or will not be conducted in a lawful manner.
Further, SVB disclaims any responsibility or warranty for any products sold by wineries or other wine industry service providers. The views expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company or any of its affiliates.
If you are a client or prospect of SVB, you can manage your email preferences, or unsubscribe from receiving promotional or marketing email communications from, at any time by visiting the Silicon Valley Bank Manage Email Preferences page. Read about our Privacy Notice. If you have any questions or concerns about our Privacy Notice, please contact us by email: privacyquestions@firstcitizens.com.
©2026 First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company. All rights reserved. Silicon Valley Bank, a division of First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company. 3003 Tasman Drive, Santa Clara, CA 95054. Member FDIC.
Silicon Valley Bank, a division of First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company, as well as the other divisions, subsidiaries, and affiliates of First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company (together, SVB), are U.S. financial institutions and provide products and services to non-U.S. clients on a cross-border basis from the United States of America. SVB is not licensed or regulated as a bank or any other type of financial institution outside of the United States of America. Please review our International Disclosures for more information.
© 2026 First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company. All rights reserved. Silicon Valley Bank, a division of First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company.
