Why I do What I do

ZERO IS MORE: Hi Jess, when was VINADA started, where is it now, and where do you see it in 5 years?

JESSICA: VINADA was started in 2018. It is currently sold in 29 countries and more than 5000 locations. This differs from Restaurants, Bars, Liquor Stores, Hotels, Cruise Ships, Airports and Online retailers. In 5 years, we hope to still be as happy as we are right now and to make even more people happy with our wines. Everything else is not very important. 

ZERO IS MORE: How did you come up with the name VINADA?  

JESSICA: Ah nice! Yes, the name: one of the most fundamental elements! For our research, we visited several wine regions throughout Europe. Like anyone else we wanted our name to be catchy, distinctive, authentic, enduring and a whole lot more all in one…and, by that time, we knew our first wine we would introduce was going to be a Spanish one, so Spain had to be reflected in the name. Together with the word wine ‘obviously’.

VIN = French for Wine

NADA = Spanish for none, which in our case stands for no alcohol

So VINADA it is!

ZERO IS MORE: “Fed up with having no real option at a party or in a bar I created my own” – that’s how the idea for VINADA® started. What will a party or a bar of 2030 look like, how do you see the drinking culture evolve?

JESSICA: Currently it’s still a taboo in some places if you are not drinking, but this is changing quickly. It will change from “are you not drinking tonight?” to “what are you drinking tonight?”. I think it will be the standard that every bar has an alcohol-free assortment. Then the quality will make all the difference.

ZERO IS MORE: Jess, you like saying that VINADA® is here to shake up the non-alcoholic wine segment. Where is the non-alcoholic wine segment at the moment, and what characterizes it?

JESSICA: Wine is a traditional industry, and non-alcoholic wines used to be a taboo in this traditional industry. I like to look at it like we are 3 years behind on the non-alcoholic beer segment. The consumer is changing, and the products are changing with the consumer. I think our job is to focus on quality and introduce people with good quality wines.

ZERO IS MORE: How far has the non-and-low alcohol industry gone when it comes to food & wine pairing, mocktail-making and taking this segment as serious as its traditional, alcohol-based counterparts? What should be the pitch to all HoReCa professionally reading this?

JESSICA: There are just as much food pairing combinations with non-alcoholic wines as with alcoholic wines and mocktails too. On our website we have a selection of mocktails, have a look, you will be surprised about the possibilities. But you can also invent your own mocktail or food pairing combination. All it needs is a little creativity.

I think the HoReCa is already aware of the non-alcoholic trends and they try to find the best wine for their customer. I think in the future every bar or restaurant will have a non-alcoholic drinks page in the menu, with beer, wine and mocktails.

ZERO IS MORE: VINADA Chardonnay is made in French wine-growing region Languedoc, the VINADA Rosé in Spanish wine-growing region La Mancha. Tell us about your producers and bottling partners and what characterizes their approach to winemaking, and your criteria for selecting your partners.

JESSICA: I searched a long time before I found the right grape to make VINADA. The sweeter grapes with the right acidity perform better after dealcoholizing. We found this grape in the Sunny South of France and Spain where we set up a joined venture for the long future with a company that was ready for a long ride. When we were searching for a partner, the most important is the quality of the final product. Everything else is less important. We invested a lot in tooling to improve the production process and we hope the customer will be happy with the end result.

ZERO IS MORE: VINADA is fun, fearless and – feminine. VINADA speaks of women who dare to break away from the norm. Tell us about your journey as a female entrepreneur, and what it means to be a female wine brand owner?

JESSICA: Who runs the world? Exactly! 😉 For me it’s important to have a vision, believe in yourself, DARE TO take a risk and most of all: TAKE ACTION! In the end you will be the one who needs to do it! Being a brand owner is a lot of fun! You can decide the course of the company. And luckily, I have a team to have a lot of fun with along the way.

ZERO IS MORE: You are the mother of a little girl and currently pregnant, how do you combine all this with running VINADA? 

JESSICA: Luckily, I have wonderful colleagues so I definitely don’t need to do it all by myself. And we count ourselves very lucky that Isabelle has lovely grandparents who love to babysit her on a weekly basis. For me it’s all about Efficiency and Flexibility. I thought I was pretty efficient before our daughter was born but found out I managed to further improve this skill since then ;-). Flexibility is what comes with running a business. With VINADA I can be much more flexible in organizing my time. I love the fact that if I want to spend some extra time with our daughter, with nice weather for example, I take her to the beach and will catch up on my work in the evening when she goes to bed. I appreciate this flexibility and see this as a huge advantage.

ZERO IS MORE: VINADA is headquartered in The Hague, The Netherlands. And with the world opening up again, we’re ready to travel. Give us you must-visit place(s) for good food in the The Hague!

JESSICA: My little secret is La Liguria at Noordeinde. A lovely second-generation Italian restaurant where you feel very welcome. Try the Sea Bass. And don’t forget to order a VINADA while you are there 😉.

ZERO IS MORE: We need one VINADA-based cocktail for the hot summer of 2021. Which one are we choosing?

JESSICA: That will be the VINADA Grapefruit Sparkle, it’s lovely!