Leading Wine Communications Agency Will Embark on Pro Bono Media Relations Campaign for Industry Non-Profit
San Francisco, Calif. November, 2020 — The United Sommeliers Foundation, a recently formed non-profit group supporting those in the wine industry negatively impacted by the COVID-19 Pandemic, announced today that Colangelo & Partners, a fine wine and spirits integrated communications agency, will be its agency of record to develop and execute a comprehensive communications strategy targeted to key trade, consumer and media stakeholders. The pro bono relationship will continue through the next six months as the hospitality and wine community continue to rebound from the economic losses since March of this year.
With the establishment of this new partnership, Colangelo & Partners will work to increase the overall awareness of the foundation and increase its donations through a strategic combination of media outreach, virtual activations, and holistic trade relations. The United Sommeliers Foundation joins a growing roster of the agency’s portfolio, which includes wineries like Charles Krug Winery, Larkmead Vineyards, Louis M. Martini, Artesa Vineyards and Winery, and Roederer Estate, along with digital wine businesses like 3×3, SevenFifty, and Vivino.
“The United Sommelier Foundation is excited to work with Colangelo & Partners to help promote the efforts of the foundation and offer more opportunities for sommeliers to receive visibility in the media. Colangelo & Partners has proven to be an outstanding communications agency for many players in the beverage alcohol space and we are very happy to announce this partnership,” says Arden Morgan, Executive Director of the United Sommeliers Foundation.
Created during the global COVID-19 crisis, The United Sommeliers Foundation has a core mission to financially aid those in the wine community—primarily sommeliers and others within the hospitality sector of the industry—who are experiencing a pause or termination of employment due to circumstances beyond their control. A rapid response to the needs of the sommelier community in America, the fundraiser’s founding team includes a handful of Master Sommeliers, Masters of Wine, and other beverage professionals.
“The United Sommeliers Foundation is a critical new organization that has helped so many of our colleagues and friends in the wine industry stay financially supported during the economic fallout of COVID,” comments Colangelo & Partners’ West Coast Vice President, Juliana Colangelo. “We’re thrilled to be collaborating with them—it will be our priority to get the group additional exposure with potential donors and make new connections between their members and opportunities within our industry network. ”
The United Sommeliers Foundation is a nonprofit corporation that is in the process of filing an application for federal tax exempt status with the IRS. If the organization receives a favorable Determination Letter from the IRS, its status as a 501(c)(3) organization will relate back to its date of inception and all contributions made to the corporation since inception will qualify as tax-deductible charitable donations.
The United Sommeliers Foundation is a charitable organization whose mission is to provide immediate financial assistance to Sommeliers experiencing a pause or termination of employment due to circumstances beyond their control. The organization assists sommeliers nationwide and was founded by several of the industry’s leading experts with more than 100 years combined experience and knowledge. The organization’s goal is to positively impact the wine industry and the sommelier community for years to come. Please visit www.
About Colangelo & Partners
Colangelo & Partners specializes in premium food, wine and spirits brands, and has long established relationships with the key press that drive these business categories and help determine the industry leaders. Agency principals have years of experience in retail and distribution as well as communications, a rare combination that gives Colangelo & Partners invaluable insights into consumer purchasing behavior. The agency focuses on ‘closing the loop’ between creative communications programs, distribution, promotion, publicity and the consumer in order to maximize the efficiency of its communications programs and deliver measurable results. Founded in 2006, Colangelo & Partners was honored as one of the year’s top integrated communications firms at the 2013 Agency Elite Awards and for one of the best digital marketing campaigns at the 2014 Digital PR Awards.
