Naked Wines toasts festive sales record
Online wine retailer Naked Wines has said it achieved record trading in the run-up to Christmas with strong year-on-year growth in all of its markets.
The group said it shipped a record 13 million bottles of wine in 2014 and average spend per bottle reached £8 which is a 7% increase on 2013.
Group sales rose nearly 40% year-on-year, and the total number of Angel investors worldwide now exceeds 250,000. Growth in Angel numbers means Naked Wines will be able to raise a record £70 million in crowd funding in 2015 to invest in independent winemakers.
Angel funding helped to recruit a number of A-list winemakers throughout 2014. Ex-Ruinart winemaker, Jean-Philippe Moulin produced an exclusive range of champagne for Naked’s Angel customers which resulted in a 13% increase in Champagne sales.
Other star signings in 2014 were Daryl Groom, former Penfolds Grange winemaker, and Stefano di Blasi, the winemaker behind Italy’s Solaia and Tignanello.
Rowan Gormley, Naked Wines’ founder and chief executive, said: “It’s incredible to think we have a quarter of a million Angels – especially for a company that didn’t exist six years ago. Our bumper Christmas means we can invest even more in small independent winemakers around the world in 2015. We have some truly great wines in the pipeline which I believe will lead to another year of strong growth. I would like to thank all of our customers and especially our growing community of Angels for their continuing support.”
