COGS isn’t the sexiest topic, but your winery can’t afford to ignore it ‍Cost of Goods Sold (COGS) isn’t exactly a dinner-party topic—but your winery can’t afford to ignore it. It’s not just an accounting exercise; it’s the foundation of financial clarity. Whether you produce 500 or 50,000 cases, not knowing your true costs means flying blind when it comes to pricing, planning, and profitability. ‍In our interactions with winery operations of all sizes, we’ve grown convinced that you can’t afford not to know your COGS. Even boutique operations are running at a disadvantage if they don’t know how much it costs to make each of the wines that they sell. ‍What is COGS? And why is it difficult? ‍In its simplest definition, COGS includes all of the cost outlay required to produce each and every SKU coming from your winery. That includes raw materials, labor, packaging, and overhead. ‍Seems fairly str

The Saxco family hopes you had a fantastic holiday filled with laughter, excellent food, and wine that continues through the end of the year. May Santa Claus bring you everything on your list and more. The whole industry is tentatively hopeful for solid holiday sales, yet there is a shadow of concern due to the potential imposition of tariffs in 2025. This looming threat could affect imported wines and essential materials such as bottles and boxes and possibly prompt retaliatory tariffs. For wine packaging, the threat of 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada, as well as the potential 10% China tariff increase, could result in substantial increases in goods costs and demand for US glass manufacturing. We are already seeing an increase in the tightening of demand for domestic glass, increasing its lead time. We recommend you speak with your partners and know where they source your packaging goods in anticipation for any future changes in duties. While most things are stable, gas prices have

Afternoon Brief, September 26th

Champagne Pickers Treated 'Like Dogs': French public prosecutor opens two human trafficking investigations after France shuts down grape picker accommodation sites...