A healthy and increasingly attractive sector: this is how Italian wine tourism presents itself according to what emerges from the first survey on the Wine Tourism Movement presented at Palazzo Giustiniani, seat of the Presidency of the Senate. On this occasion it was The CESEO Wine and Oil Tourism Study Centre of the LUMSA University was also presented, the new observatory inaugurated on this occasion. Important data: 53% of the sample of companies in the Movement recorded an increase in turnover and, among these, 1 in 4 (24%), the growth was even double digit. But alongside the growth data of the sector, some critical issues are also expected for the constant increase in costs reported by 81% of wineries: increases that erode profit margins and which in many cases are particularly significant (29% recorded growth of between 5% and 10%, 16% reported an increase of between 10% and 25%, and a significant 8% declared an increase of more than 25%.). A particularly critical scenario especially for small businesses which represent a large part of the sample (64% micro-enterprises, 31% small businesses). It should also be remembered that only 9% of the wineries exceed 2 million in annual turnover. "The study represents an in-depth snapshot of the activity of the Movement's wineries, an increasingly diversified, dynamic reality with a focus on sustainability - explained Violante Gardini Cinelli Colombini, president of the Movimento Turismo del Vino - We involved our companies right from the start because we strongly believe in the potential of the Study Center in conducting highly scientifically rigorous research aimed at enhancing the peculiarities of the sector and, at the same time, at the systematic analysis of critical issues and opportunities. The survey will allow us to develop training courses for tourist wineries, support regional presidents with updated and reliable data on the sector, encourage MTV members to improve their offering consolidating its leading role in Italian wine tourism.” A crucial element of the survey concerned the role of professionalization and skills within companies: currently only 38% of tourist wineries have staff with specific skills in Wine Hospitality. In the others, it is often the owner who receives visitors (63%) or occasionally employees who deal with sales, communications or other company personnel direct themselves towards the reception. On the other hand, in most cases, as seen just above, economic flows and turnover do not allow for investment in qualified personnel.
53% of the sample of companies recorded an increase in turnover and, among these, 1 in 4 (24%), the growth was even double digit.
But hospitality in the vineyard and cellar is a much more complex format and if the road to equipping the cellars with specific staff is at the beginning, we are well advanced on equally crucial aspects. Hospitality is in fact the central theme for an Association like the Movimento Turismo del Vino which, for over thirty years, has been rewriting the way of doing wine tourism by making the experience in the cellar more accessible and inclusive. A direction demonstrated by the increasingly high level of hospitality standards, both at a structural level, in reference to the presence of parking, equipped tasting rooms, rest areas for campers and accessible routes for people with motor difficulties, but also at the level of complementary activities offered, in particular those carried out outdoors. The survey shows, in fact, that the landscape is one of the main attractions both for the initiatives proposed (33% of the cellars organize picnics in the vineyard, 30% walks in the vineyard), but also at an environmental level (43% of the companies are BIO, 38% respect the standards of sustainable agriculture); It should be noted that these percentages are significantly higher than those for the entire Italian Agricultural Area (SAU) where organic stands at 19,8% (source: Fondazione Metes). It should also be noted that 26% of the wineries interviewed provide charging stations for electric cars.
The key element of the promotion strategy is social media: Facebook remains the most popular social media (97%) together with Instagram (96%).
The research also shows that the offer of MTV wineries is characterized by a notable variety of experiences, 65% of the companies focus on a limited number of experiences (up to four), while the remaining 35% diversify more, offering from five to eighteen different activities, from the most traditional to more exclusive initiatives. 87% of the wineries offer typical local products during the tasting, 25% organize dinners with the producer and 20% cooking courses. Great attention is also paid to families, in fact, 38% of the sample organizes educational experiences, among which some are dedicated to the little ones, also with equipped play areas and organization of visits to educational farms. The range of costs of wine experiences is also very wide, starting from 15 euros to reach peaks of 150 with an average of 25 euros. Furthermore, the research highlights how tourist reception is more effective on weekends with over half of the wineries now open on Sundays; 85% can be visited all year round. As many as 68% accept visitors even without an appointment. Finally, the issue of digitalization: as far as communication channels are concerned, the website is an indispensable tool, although it is not yet used to its full potential in terms of visibility and loyalty (42% of wineries register less than 1.000 visits per month and 15% do not regularly monitor the number of accesses). The situation is similar for the mailing list where 42% of wineries send monthly communications while 33% send at least three times a year. From the study it is clear that the key element of the promotion strategy is social media: Facebook remains the most popular social network (97%) together with Instagram (96%). Linkedin (37%) plays a more marginal role, probably because it is perceived as a more B2B-oriented channel, as does Tik Tok (only 7% at least for now). The data shows a notable online presence by wineries, however, in most cases, this does not correspond to a concrete increase in visitors.
Speaking about the new Enotourism and Oleotourism Study Center, President Dario Stefàno defined it as “a successful bet because it rewards an investment, shared with LUMSA University, farsighted and ambitious, which focuses on a sector, the enotourism sector – and the oil tourism sector – he underlined – which has now become a true driver of development of the international tourist offer. When we talk about enotourism – he continued – we are referring to a sector in constant growth, with an annual increase of 13% on a global scale, as reported by the IMF (International Monetary Fund), and which finds in Italy the possibility of its maximum expression on a global level. However, this protagonism requires qualified analysis support, a research and investigation point as CESEO claims and intends to be, which traces guidelines capable of being a compass towards sustainable and possibly homogeneous growth of the territories and their actors; a stimulus for government policies and, at the same time, a driver for preparing training programs, capable of restoring figures and skills that are more necessary than ever for the sector"
