The latest news from nakedwines.com – a passionate community of indie winemakers and wine drinkers changing the way great wines are made.
It’s time to get real about diversity and inclusion. In partnership with The Roots Fund and UC Davis, we’re ready to change this industry for the better – starting with a $500,000 commitment to Black, Latinx, and Indigenous representation in wine.
Naked’s community is already responsible for such great change in the wine world
Our 750,000 Angels around the globe are the ones responsible for huge, important changes in this industry – you always have been.
Together, you’ve helped Naked Wines build the largest winemaker-first community in the world – and nothing makes us prouder than working with you to lift up the most passionate, important and unique voices in wine.
We need you more than ever to break this industry’s barriers
The undeniable fact is that the majority of those voices tend to skew white and fairly male.
There’s no skirting around the truth – the wine industry is a very white industry.
And while it’s generally a very good industry, those who don’t look like the majority face constant barriers and stumbling blocks to progress their careers.
“I feel obligated to talk openly about the subject of transformation and how slowly the wheels of change are turning,” winemaker Carmen Stevens said.
“My role is also to speak openly about how rarely these brand owners are asked to take part in industry decisions, decisions that are made on our behalf.”
Here in the US, for example, less than 2% of winery owners or winemakers are people of color.
It’s one thing for us to read those statistics, and it’s another to impact them...
And as a company looking to revolutionize the way wine is made for the better, we have special responsibility there.
To start, we’re making a $500,000 commitment to support BIPOC representation in wine
This is not an empty corporate promise. This comes from our heart.
It’s our responsibility to continue carving paths that give winemakers the platform to succeed – whether they are the famous producers of today or the tastemakers of tomorrow – in a way that encourages diversity and inclusion with every step.
It’s a big challenge, and this is step one, because there’s much more to do
Here’s how we’re getting started:
Established in 2020, The Roots Fund was created to nourish and enrich the lives of Black and Indigenous people in the wine community.
1. We’re committing to a partnership with The Roots Fund to launch a winemaking scholarship program at University of California Davis, the country’s top wine school.
(Many of the winemakers you know and love are alumni – including Alex Farber, Matt Iaconis and David Akiyoshi!)
2. Alongside this we will continue to fund two winemaking college scholarships at the University of Stellenbosch with the help of winemaker Carmen Stevens in South Africa every year.
3. We’re also creating a winemaker mentoring program, to give budding BIPOC winemakers launch their own wines with the mentorship of our winemakers, designers, portfolio experts and marketing teams.
– We want to ensure these winemakers will go on to be successful independent winemakers in the future.
Signing the check is the easy part. What happens after that is what matters most
So, our best winemaking and business brains have all passionately come forward to offer their mentoring support…
… and The Roots Fund is an incredible partner to make the most impactful difference we can.
“Change starts from within. Whether you are a vintner, industry leader, sales representative or educator, we have a social responsibility to not only promote inclusivity for all Americans but also become an ally to the Indigenous community and people of color.”
– Carlton McCoy, INTERVIEW: CARLTON MCCOY JR, MASTER SOMMELIER + CEO OF DEMEINE ESTATES
With you by our side, we’re hopeful that this community can become prolific in its ability to see, recognize and challenge every aspect of the wine business that needs to change.
This is our commitment to you
If you’ve seen Naked’s financial results in the news, it’s clear that we’re growing and seeing great success in the amazingly powerful community we’ve built together.
… with that growth comes a responsibility to use the power of our community for good.
We’re letting you know about these commitments first, because:
We want you to hold us accountable to these promises, and we want to say thank you.
You and 750,000 wine drinkers around the world have made this possible.