The world of fine wine is undergoing an internet revolution.
Fine wine trader Bordeaux Index launched Live Trade, a two way trading service for 60 of the world’s top wines two months ago, giving the public the power to bid and sell wine directly without a broker. The company claims it has recorded around £4m worth of trade in its first two months.
Now wine broker Fine+ Rare has launched a new web tool allowing users to value their fine wine collections and sell them at the click of a mouse. Users of the site can type in their portfolio to find out current market prices. It takes a 10-15% fee for brokering the wine if you wish to sell.
Hot on their heels is Berry Bros & Rudd. The London-based fine wine merchant is set to launch a new service that will allow customers to trade their reserves on the BBR site and set their own bid prices. Berrys takes a 10% fee from the sale.
So what does this all mean? The customer ultimately benefits from greater transparency of prices and gains greater control over buying and selling their own wines. The public have greater information than ever before about the quality of the wines on the market and their value.
However, this doesn’t mean the merchant is becoming obsolete. The public still need reliable advice and trusted avenues to buy and sell. Established names like Berrys, and Fine + Rare will continue to profit amid the proliferation of (sometimes untrustworthy) internet traders.
Let me know what you think about the changing face of fine wine investment.
Check out my Fine + Rare story and BBR article on decanter.com.
