100k Naked Angels Crowdfund Top Napa Winemaker

NAPA, Calif., Aug. 14, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Nakedwines.com, a fast growing online wine retailer, has united 100k customers to invest $105k in a private venture with Macario Montoya, a top Napa winemaker. Macario has a proven track record as he currently produces 90+ point, $85 Cabernet Sauvignon in the Napa Valley. 

He's raised this money in order to branch out and make wine with Spanish grape varieties in Californian soil. It's an unusual move for a winemaker who has so much success with traditional grapes like Cabernet Sauvignon, but he promises a great return for his investors.

200% guaranteed return and it's all liquid

The Angels who invested in Macario have not asked for any equity, any interest, or any payments. Instead, they expect a massive discount on all his wines so that they'll be able to buy twice as much of it.

Macario in turn has agreed to this massive discount because he knows that the Angel investors are removing his greatest costs: sales and marketing.

Funded by cutting costs you can't taste

Since Macario's wines are crowdfunded by the eventual consumers, there are no marketing or sales costs. This allows the Naked Angels to invest heavily in grapes and Macario, without wasting money on things they can't taste.

In the wine business, the cost of selling is so high that it can often double or triple the price of a bottle. Macario says, "I'm happy to offer 200% return in wine. As long as I don't have to spend anything marketing my wine, I can charge my investors less, and still make more money."

Customers are already reviewing the wines

To read customer reviews on these wines, go to http://us.nakedwines.com/winemakers/macario-montoya.htm

Website : http://www.nakedwines.com 
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/nakedwinesusa 
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/nakedwinesusa 
Contact Details:  [email protected] / 707 723 4762

NOTES ON NAKED WINES

What we're all about

Naked Wines, was born in December 2008 when twelve friends quit their jobs in the middle of the recession to do things a little differently.

Our goal: Find the world's most talented, undiscovered winemakers and set them up in business.

How we go about it:

• 100,000 customers invest over $3 million dollars a month towards future orders (we call them 'Angels')
• Which we use to fund independent winemakers
• In return for exclusive wines at preferential prices
• Which we pass back to our customers

We call it the 'virtuous circle', as everybody gets more for less, without trampling on anyone along the way.

The hard and fast facts

If you're looking for something a little meatier, this should help:   

• We've invested in 50 independent winemakers to date
• We ship an average of 10,000 bottles of wine every day
• We've seen over 100% growth year-on-year, with sales of $40 million in 2011
• We've recruited 200k customers, 100k of which invest over $3 million dollars a month towards future orders
• We were named the UK's most innovative wine company for two years on the trot, at the IWC
• We were named the UK's Online Business of the Year at the 2011 National Business Awards
• And we're probably the world's largest group of net wine investors

A truly social business

As well as the model itself, the website delivers a truly social experience.

• Customers can chat directly to one another and to the winemakers.
• Customers can vote with their feet on new initiatives and wines, to decide what makes the cut.
• And we can suggest to customers what to buy AND what not to buy, based on their preferences.

The team

The man at the top is Rowan Gormley, former Virgin Wines and Virgin Money CEO, and our non-executive director who keeps us in check is Ian West, former BSkyB MD. The rest of us are an assorted bunch of 20 wine and tech-loving employees based in Napa.

Media contact: Adam Reiter, 707-723-4762, [email protected]

SOURCE Nakedwines.com

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