Lessons from the 2026 SVB Direct-to-Consumer Report

The 2026 SVB Direct-to-Consumer Wine Report delivers a message that every winery owner and operator should pay attention to.

The headline isn't that visitation is down. Most wineries already know that.

The headline isn't that wine club growth has slowed. Most wineries are experiencing that reality as well.

The real story is that while the median winery reported no growth, the top-performing quartile of wineries increased revenue by 22%, while the bottom quartile declined by 13%.

In other words, wineries are operating in the same market conditions but achieving dramatically different results.

So what separates the winners from the rest?

The Industry Challenges Remain

The report confirms several trends that continue to pressure winery profitability.

Direct-to-consumer sales remain the foundation of the premium wine business, accounting for approximately 72% of revenue. Yet the channels driving those sales are under strain.

Tasting room visitation continues to decline, reducing opportunities to acquire new customers and wine club members. At the same time, wine club growth has slowed as acquisition rates struggle to keep pace with attrition.

These challenges are real and unlikely to disappear overnight.

However, the report suggests that market conditions alone do not determine success.

The Key Difference: Customer Focus

Perhaps the most valuable insight from the report is the distinction between the mindset of high-performing wineries and struggling wineries.

According to SVB, successful wineries focus outward on customers and relationships.

Struggling wineries focus inward on operations and costs.

That distinction may sound simple, but it has significant implications.

The wineries achieving growth are investing time in understanding their customers, building stronger relationships, creating memorable experiences, and maintaining meaningful engagement beyond the tasting room.

Meanwhile, struggling wineries are more likely to focus on reducing expenses, lowering prices, improving operational efficiency, or upgrading facilities in the hope that customers will return.

Operational discipline is essential. Every winery should manage costs and maintain financial control.

But cost-cutting alone does not create demand.

Taking the Winery to the Customer

One of the most interesting themes throughout the report is the growing emphasis on meeting customers where they are.

Many of the highest-performing wineries are expanding engagement beyond the winery visit through regional events, wine dinners, club gatherings, community involvement, and direct customer outreach.

Rather than waiting for consumers to come to wine country, they are finding new ways to strengthen relationships in the markets where their customers live.

The wineries succeeding today appear to recognize that the future of direct-to-consumer sales extends beyond the tasting room.

What Winery Operators Should Do Next

The report points to several practical actions winery operators can take immediately:

Develop a deeper understanding of your customer base and segment customers based on behavior, not just demographics.
Focus as much attention on retention as acquisition.
Create opportunities to engage customers between club shipments and winery visits.
Evaluate customer lifetime value, conversion rates, and retention metrics alongside traditional sales measures.
Invest in relationship-building initiatives that strengthen customer loyalty and brand affinity.

The wineries growing today are not waiting for conditions to improve. They are adapting their strategies to match changing consumer behavior.

The Opportunity Ahead

The most encouraging takeaway from this year's report is that growth remains possible.

The data clearly shows that some wineries are finding ways to succeed despite declining visitation and changing consumer preferences. The difference is not simply the market they serve. It is how they respond to the market they are given.

At Protea Financial, we work exclusively with wineries to help them understand their numbers, identify opportunities, improve profitability, and make better business decisions. From operational accounting and cost accounting to financial reporting and winery-specific advisory services, our focus is on helping wineries turn information into action.

If you're looking to better understand your customer profitability, wine club performance, operational efficiency, or overall financial health, let's start a conversation. The wineries that thrive over the next decade will be those that combine strong financial management with a deep understanding of their customers.

The data is available. The opportunity is there. The question is whether your winery is positioned to take advantage of it.

Download the full report here.