France is the leading producer, consumer and exporter of wine, and Bordeaux is at the center of this heritage.

Bordeaux savoir-faire is unique as it has been producing wine for two thousand years. However, within the last 20 years, wine markets have become increasingly globalized and competitive.

The French wine industry is increasingly focusing on how to market and boost wine sales and resist competition. Today’s wine industry is extremely fragmented and has a myriad of brands, which creates a problem in brand recognition and complicates the sales process.

Over the years, French wines will continue to be bought by collectors all over the world, however with the rise of global competition, the challenge for Classified growths of Bordeaux is to remain leader of these markets and maintain their reputation of excellence.

How do classified growths of Bordeaux such as the Classified Growths of Graves differentiate themselves in wine business for old and also new generation of customers? How do 16 different chateaux brand themselves individually and within a group?

This seminar will cover these questions and specifically look into how a syndicat (wine group) promotes their wines internationally through high-end events. The three following points will be used to illustrate this:

• Market strategy
• Promotional tools
• Target audiences

The workshop will then illustrate these points by focusing on the products by a commented tasting of the wines of two of the Classified Growths of Graves: Chateau Smith Haut-Lafitte and Chateau Latour-Martillac.

Please register by sending your name and contact details to Ms. Denise Law at denise.law@polyu.edu.hk or tel: 3400 2180 for registration, followed by bank transfer payment or a cheque made payable to "The Hong Kong Polytechnic University" addressed to Ms Denise Law, School of Hotel & Tourism Management, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, 17 Science Museum Road, Tsimshatsui East, Kowloon, Hong Kong. First-come first-served.