For RF|Binder’s latest Hour to Empower, we had the opportunity to hear from Sarah Bakx, President of Bold Brands at the American division of Treasury Wine Estates (TWE), a leading global, luxury wine company. Sarah spoke about her unconventional start in the wine industry, her experience as a woman in male-dominated spaces and how she fosters inclusivity and challenges the status quo for her team, business partners and the wine industry at large. As we celebrate Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day this March and beyond, our conversation with Sarah offered valuable insights and actionable ideas on how we can continue to empower and uplift women.
RF|Binder hosts Hour to Empower sessions on a regular basis, bringing in a diverse mix of speakers and thought leaders to inspire reflection, strike up meaningful conversations with our colleagues and drive impact for our clients.
“The Girl” in Sales
Sarah’s journey into the wine industry began as a happy coincidence, after finding a role as a merchandiser at a distribution company during college. Then, a week before Thanksgiving—one of the busiest times of the year for the wine industry—a salesperson at the company quit unexpectedly. In the scramble to find a replacement, Sarah was chosen to fill the role. They decided to put “the girl” in, Sarah recounted. This would become her nickname for the next several years.
Being a young woman in wine sales was no easy feat. Not only is wine a male-dominated industry, sales is a male-dominated profession. Yet, through her time in this role, Sarah uncovered a love for wine. She remembers sitting with restauranteurs and sommeliers, listening to their stories and watching them light up with energy and passion as they spoke about wine. What began as a job taken out of necessity had inspired Sarah to pursue a lifelong career.
Making Wine Fun
Prior to joining Treasury Wine Estates, Sarah served as the vice president of sales for a luxury tequila brand, where she learned how lively and innovative the spirits industry can be. The question then became how can we bring bolder marketing and out-of-the-box thinking to wine, which sometimes maintains a reputation for being stuffy and unapproachable, especially among younger consumers.
Upon joining Treasury Wine Estates, Sarah made it her mission to change the way wine is marketed, talked about, and ultimately perceived by applying her experience working in spirits.
Treasury Wine Estates’ latest addition to its portfolio, Drop of Sunshine, seeks to shake up the status quo by creating a wine centered around women and storytelling. Created in partnership with Hello Sunshine, the media company founded by Reese Witherspoon and focused on elevating women’s stories, Drop of Sunshine embodies this ethos, from its majority-woman winemaking team to the marketing strategies used to reach women. With women accounting for more than 70% of wine purchases, there’s a need for the industry to celebrate and speak to them more directly.
Building a Culture of Inclusivity and Authenticity
Inclusivity and authenticity are not just values that Sarah seeks to inject into Treasury Wine Estates’ portfolio, they’re values that she brings to the company’s workplace culture as well. Sarah shared the three core tenants of Treasury Wine Estates’ culture, referred to as the “TWE DNA.”
- Bring your whole self. Team members are encouraged to meet their peers where they are, with the expectation that the lines between our personal and professional lives can be blurred. We are all human.
- Be courageous. It takes courage to show up as our whole selves. Being courageous means pushing boundaries, breaking industry “rules” and being open to vulnerable conversations.
- Deliver together. As Sarah puts it, “functions within a company aren’t successful. Companies are successful.” When team members work together as one, they achieve goals and make an impact.
These values help build a workplace culture where team members feel comfortable to voice their opinions and push for positive change. Speaking to this year’s International Women’s Day theme of “Accelerate Action,” Sarah expressed that we spend so much time deciding what to say, how to formulate a plan and who to communicate it to, that we don’t spend enough time pursuing real action and pushing the fold in any meaningful way.
Accelerating Action Today and Tomorrow
For Sarah, putting “Accelerate Action” into practice means actively uplifting and advocating for women’s voices in the workplace. For example, Sarah has adopted a practice during meetings where she takes notice of who is dominating the conversation and who may be feeling reluctant to speak up. She calls on these people directly by asking if they have a perspective to add, giving them space to contribute, thereby creating more inclusive meeting norms.
Sarah wrapped up her Hour to Empower with a challenge for all of us: “be part of the change we’re talking about.” As PR and communications professionals, we have the power to shape the way women are portrayed in the media, or if they are even portrayed at all. Amongst our colleagues and our clients, Sarah challenges us to speak up on behalf of women’s voices this Women’s History Month and beyond.
