Promoting Wine (Tourism) as a Driver for Sustainable Local Development

Wine training to F&B staff in Korea by Catherine GERMIER

Has the COVID pandemic created new opportunities for the global wine tourism? 
In spite of a slight decrease in 2020 (-2.8%), the worldwide wine consumption is expected to bounce back this year. In South Korea, ranked as the second most attractive wine market in the world, wine imports hit a new high, especially due to increased home and solo consumption. Indeed, the Korean wine market is still growing and maturing, mostly driven by women and young drinkers.  
Since her arrival in Seoul in 2005, Catherine GERMIER, Founder & CEO of Millennium Destinations, has been active in promoting wine knowledge and appreciation in Korea through a variety of events and initiatives such as Wine & Women Korea. More recently, she has been been active in fostering wine tourism as a tool for rural development and community empowerment, especially through the Herost online platform featuring eco-friendly travel experiences that are good for People and the Planet.

Tasting at Jean-Louis MAULER wine estate in France

Since April 2021, Millennium Destinations has been partnering with C&Y, a French company supporting independent winemakers in their marketing efforts towards Asian markets and particularly South Korea as pilot country, either under the UniK Wines brand or individually.  
In August 2021, Catherine GERMIER and ​Charlène COURTAT, Cofounder & CEO of C&Y, undertook a field trip to French wine-producing regions such as Alsace, Champagne, Roussillon, etc. in order to meet winemakers and wine professionals willing to explore the potential of the Korean market.  
As a continuation, Millennium Destinations provided its support to C&Y for the organization of its first mission in Seoul, on September 27 to October 4. 

Since 2019, Catherine GERMIER has been working with public and private organizations and professionals involved in trade and tourism for the identification of eco-friendly wine tourism experiences to be featured in the Herost platform, with a focus on Colombia, the Czech Republic, France, Portugal, Spain, etc. but also less-known yet promising winemaking countries such as South Korea.  
Since July 2021, Millennium has provided its support to the Czech Tourism Office in Seoul for the development of a sustainable tourism strategy and the design of pilot sustainable tourism products in the Czech Republic, dedicated to the Korean market. This products will highlight rural tourism & agritourism experiences such as farm stays and visits of wineries and breweries. 
During her visit to the Seoul International Wines & Spirits Expo 2021, Catherine had a chance to notice how wineries have progressed in Korea, as a result of significant R&D efforts aimed at improving winemaking techniques and introducing new grape varieties. 

Seoul International Wines & Spirits Expo 2021

Additionally, Catherine attended (online) the 5th UNWTO Global Conference on Wine Tourism which took place on Sept. 9 & 10, in Alentejo, Portugal, under the theme ‘Wine Tourism – a driver for rural development’. 
On June 18, she had joined a seminar on eco-friendly wine tourism (Œnotourisme et développement durable : l'éco-œnotourisme est-il possible ?) hosted by the Ecole Supérieur d'Agriculture d'Angers (ESA - Higher School of Agriculture of Angers) in France. ​

Millennium Destinations is an accredited operator of the Chèque Relance Export program providing technical and financial support to French SMEs in their efforts to develop their businesses overseas. 
Check more here: https://lnkd.in/gKJRy8eK and feel free to contact us if you have any plan to expand your wine-related activities in Korea. 

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