Pacific Northwest’s leading winery taps beverage veteran to lead sales organization in vital home region
WOODINVILLE, Wash. (November 2, 2020) –Ste. Michelle Wine Estates, the largest wine company in the Pacific Northwest and the third-largest premium wine company in the U.S., has appointed Derika Legg as Vice President, West Region.
In this role she will lead the company’s sales organization in the seven-state region that includes Washington, Oregon, California, Idaho, Montana, Alaska and Hawaii.
Legg joins Ste. Michelle from a consultancy she founded in 2016 – D2 Consulting and On The Horizon Coaching – where she specialized in helping small to mid-size beverage startups launch and expand regionally and nationally. Among her many accomplishments was building Bundaberg Brewed Drinks into one of the leading ginger beers in the U.S.
Prior to launching her consultancy, Legg spent seven years with PepsiCo in a variety of roles including National Account Manager, Director of Innovation and Senior Director of Business Development.
Legg began her career in the beverage alcohol category with Heineken USA, first in sales and analytics in Europe and the Middle East and then in a variety of sales roles across on- and off-premise channels in the midwestern and northwestern U.S.
Legg will report to Dan Heller, Executive Vice President of Sales for Ste. Michelle Wine Estates.
About Ste. Michelle Wine Estates
Ste. Michelle Wine Estates is the third-largest premium winery in the United States and the largest winery in the Pacific Northwest. With a distinguished history that dates to 1934, the winery now farms more than 30,000 acres across Washington, Oregon, and California and distributes its wines in over 100 countries. Ste. Michelle Wine Estates pioneered vinifera winegrowing in Washington and remains the driving force behind viticulture and enology research in the state, including the establishment of the Washington State University viticulture and enology program and the construction of the university’s research and teaching winery, now named the Ste. Michelle Wine Estates WSU Wine Science Center.
The Ste. Michelle Wine Estates portfolio includes Chateau Ste. Michelle, 14 Hands, Columbia Crest, Intrinsic, Erath, Patz & Hall, Borne of Fire, Northstar, and Spring Valley Vineyard, along with several other premium brands. The winery also has partnerships with Marchesi Antinori (Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars and Col Solare), Dr. Loosen (Eroica), and Michel Gassier and Philippe Cambie (Tenet). Ste. Michelle Wine Estates serves as the exclusive U.S. importer for Marchesi Antinori, Champagne Nicolas Feuillatte, and Villa Maria. For more information, please visit www.smwe.com.
