Despite all the growth in wine consumption in the US, consumers still often need guidance about what to drink. That’s part of the reason the Canvas Wines program at Hyatt Hotels & Resorts has done so well, and why the company took home the Vibe Vista award for best hotel wine program this year.
Created in 2007 exclusively for Hyatt by Folio Fine Wine Partners, a Michael Mondavi Family wine company, the Canvas wines came into being with the direct aid of Michael Mondavi and his son, Rob Mondavi, with the goal of developing food-friendly, approachable California wines that would appeal to the Hyatt customer and set a new standard of excellence in dining.
The partnership and involvement of the Michael Mondavi family, with decades of wine making experience, yielded a collaborative creation between an experienced wine producer and the company’s food and beverage team, and brought Hyatt a partner in helping to guide long term success.
The Canvas Wines are marketed as a full-fledged brand with a strategy touching both consumers and Hyatt employees. These marketing programs and strategies include a brand website, www.CanvasWines.com with an online store to accommodate Hyatt guests; an internal educational website which Hyatt employees can use to further their knowledge and training on the available wines and vintages; an e-post card app meant to be a fun and interactive tool to engage with Hyatt customers; and the Canvas Artist Series label contest, developed to celebrate the arts and invites art students across the country to be rewarded for their creativity and receive a $5,000 scholarship towards their education.
When Canvas was launched in 2007, Hyatt and Mondavi led a multi-city training tour at various properties to help introduce and educate F&B and catering management on the new brand and partnership. Seven years later, the Michael Mondavi family continues to conduct multiple staff trainings annually throughout the country to promote the brand. Hyatt Hotels & Resorts also promotes the Canvas wines internally to their F&B managers and catering departments through various tastings and meetings.
Canvas Wines continue to be a strong brand for Hyatt, growing from 40,000 cases in 2007 to nearly 100,000 cases in production today (almost 1.2 million bottles sold annually) with nearly half of all Canvas sales attributed to banquet and catering functions.