Breaking: English wine body becomes WineGB

The national body for the English and Welsh wine industry has announced its new official name today: Wines of Great Britain, although it will use the shortened ‘WineGB’ in all its communications.

David Parkinson is to become CEO of Wines of Great Britain in January

This includes the website, which will be launched in January 2018 as wineGB.co.uk

Wines of Great Britain follows the formal merger on 1 September of the two industry bodies: United Kingdom Vineyards Association (UKVA) and English Wine Producers (EWP).

The new branding for WineGB will be unveiled along with the website in January.

At the same time the board of wines of Great Britain has also announced the appointment of David Parkinson as CEO of the organisation, who will be officially starting on 1 January 2018.

Having grown up in the brewing industry, David’s career has spanned the wine trade, advertising and local government.

For 10 years he worked in wine production, sales and marketing mainly in France, Spain and USA, after which he switched career to spend the next 18 years in consumer and business-to-business advertising.

Since 2007 he has been closely involved in local and central government projects, which has included being leader of a District Council.

Commenting on his appointment, David said: “I am relishing the opportunity to ensure that this growing industry continues to prosper and to work with WineGB’s members to ensure they have the support from their trade organisation to deliver tangible results that have a positive impact on their businesses.

“Harnessing the input from Central Government to local authorities is an essential component of this role as well as identifying what we can learn from other wine regions around the world and making that relevant to the needs and requirements of our members.”

Simon Robinson, chairman of Wines of Great Britain, commented, “We are delighted to announce the appointment of David to the organisation.”

“David brings strong expertise in planning, environmental issues and economic development, all of which will be vital in taking this rapidly expanding industry forward. His many skills will prove an invaluable asset to our central operational team.”

WineGB will be launching its new branding, website and communications in January 2018.