Google Exec Joins Vintners’ Alliance Board

NEWS RELEASE

Aug. 22, 2013
Contact ahin@vintnersalliance.com – 707-812-1733

Technology combined with with behavioral targeting will transform online wine sales says Vintners’ Alliance 

SAN FRANCISCO, CA – Ahin Thomas, president of Vintners’ Alliance (VA) announced today that Jeff Montgomery has joined their board of directors. Montgomery is currently the head of retail at Google, a post he has held since 2011. Throughout his career, Montgomery has been on the cutting edge of online customer targeting and ad distribution, holding positions at Placecast, Tribal Fusion, DoubleClick and MyPoints.

Montgomery joins VA’s board of established technology and luxury marketing leaders, which includes Vintners’ Alliance co-founder and chairman Patrick J. Connolly (EVP/CMO at Williams-Sonoma), Jorge del Calvo, Partner at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman in Silicon Valley), and Thampy Thomas (Founder of Nexgen Microsystems).

“Jeff is an incredibly impactful addition during this growth stage for VA,” explains Thomas. “Our underlying technology and targeting systems are world-class, and now can leverage learnings from the most profitable luxury retailers in the world. With the foundation laid, we can unleash some of the best minds in the online arena to help transform the way wine is sold.”

“Customers tell us what they want by their behavior. If you are someone that is interested in super-premium Napa Valley cabernets, then that’s what we’re going to offer you with ads and on websites” explains Thomas. “We combine the best technologies with a disciplined approach to reach luxury buyers. We learn from the customers’ behavior, so wineries can grow their online business.”

Montgomery is a champion of these practices, having worked with them for decades with success on luxury brands. “I am thrilled to be partnering with the VA team,” says Montgomery. “I have seen this technology perform for other luxury brands and am excited to help Vintners’ Alliance introduce it to the wine industry. Their approach to targeting online wine buyers is transformative in this market.”

Started in 2009 by Thomas and Connolly to sustainably expand the direct sales of its winery partners, VA deploys an array of data segmentation and behavioral targeting tools that, while proven in the luxury retail space, are still unprecedented in the wine industry. Now, in its fourth year, Vintners’ Alliance provides performance marketing solutions to over 200 wineries. It’s latest offering, Vintners’ Alliance marketplace, offers wineries differentiated, branded exposure to the VA pool of online wine buyers
More information can be found at corporate.vintnersalliance.com.

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