The 5th International Conference of the Academy of Wine Business Research, in Auckland in February 2010, will bring together researchers and industry members to explore the business and marketing topics of importance to the world wine industry.

The conference, managed by the University's Faculties of Science and Business and Economics, will be co-chaired by Professor Rod Brodie (general organisation and administration) and Dr Nick Lewis (scientific programme).

The University is located in downtown Auckland and is within walking distance of an excellent range of accommodation.

The conference will follow the format of the previous conferences in France and Italy with the last day being devoted to visits of wineries.
Conference theme: Enterprise diversity in the business of wine

The conference is intended to bring together researchers and industry members to explore a range of business and marketing topics of importance to understanding business and marketing in local and global wine industries and to working more effectively in those industries.

The theme of the 2010 conference is enterprise diversity. When preparing their papers for the conference we invite participants to consider emphasising the diversity of regional settings, business structures, marketing and branding strategies, and business and consumer practices that comprise wine industries.

As an innovation at the Auckland conference, there will be a special session on case studies in wine business. The conference organisers are in discussion with the editor and board of the International Journal of Wine Business Research about a special issue of the journal, which would include the best cases. Priority will be given to cases that reflect the conference theme of Enterprise diversity in the business of wine.

Industry afternoon: Future of the New Zealand Wine Industry on the Global Stage

In conjunction with the main conference a seminar held for the New Zealand Wine Industry on Monday afternoon 8 February 2010. The topic for the afternoon is Future of the New Zealand Wine Industry on the Global Stage. All participants in the Wine Industry are welcome to attend.

Additional information on this is available on the industry afternoon page.

Other events to attend

AWBR conference delegates might also wish to visit vineyards in the wine growing regions of New Zealand and attend the following festivals and events.

• Attending delegates may also wish to attend the NZ Pinot Noir Conference, 1-4 February 2010. For more information please visit their website.  
• Following the Auckland conference, a field trip to the South Island is proposed by Dr Rupert Tipples and his colleagues at Lincoln University.
• Waiheke Winegrowers will hold a wine festival on the weekend of 6-7 February 2010, which could provide the perfect event to take in, prior to the Academy of Wine Business Research Conference. Waiheke Island is 35 minutes by fast ferry from downtown Auckland and is a delightful place to visit, relax and recover from your journey to Auckland.  More information on places of interest and things to do is available on the Waiheke website.