In an unprecedented move, the London International Wine Fair (LIWF) and Distil has been moved one day forward in the week to start on a Monday.
Organiser Brintex will now stage the three-day 2013 show from 20th to 22nd May, incorporating Monday for the first time. The ExCeL-based show will run across Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, instead of Tuesday to Thursday as a result of extensive research and feedback from both visitors and exhibitors over the summer, say organisers.
Exhibition director, James Murray, commented: “We have had an overwhelmingly positive response that Monday would be preferable to Thursday. As a result of the change, we are expecting to attract a greater number of the on-trade as well as independents who tend to be quieter on Mondays and more able to leave their businesses to spend time at the show.”
Speaking English at the LIWF
The show, while having a distinctly international flavour, is playing a growing role in the promotion of English wine to a national and foreign audience. For the 2012 show, two English vineyards, Nyetimber and Ridgeview, took stands. More significantly, ukvine staged a ground-breaking seminar looking at the future for English wine to a domestic and foreign audience of visitors.
James Graham, ukvine co-founder and editorial director, says: “In May, we set the agenda at the LIWF for a first-class discussion on the future for English wine (pictured). We had five great speakers and well over 150 attendees for our discussion. I acknowledge the help from Brintex in staging this briefing and I am convinced that it opened the eyes to many from abroad, as well as this country, to the potential developments in the industry over the coming decade.”
For an audio recording of the ukvine LIWF briefing on May 24, 2012, click here and scroll down to May 24.
