Welcome to episode 981 in which host Polly Hammond interviews Natasha Sumkina, this week on Uncorked.

This week, we welcome Natasha Sumkina, a St Petersburg native who is spearheading Russian-language wine communications for the GenZ and Millennial markets. Join us as we explore trends in education vs entertainment, social media and socialising, and how we may need to rethink what we think about Russian wine consumers.

More about today’s guest:

Natasha Sumkina is a wine communicator and educator working specifically with the Russian-speaking markets. She lives in London, where she is presently working on her WSET diploma; she is the founder of MonaVina, a St Petersburg-based wine club for GenZ and Millenials; and she passed her pandemic months working in wine importation, bringing over 40 wines to the Russian market. Her latest endeavour? Launching a Russian-language podcast to help her peers fall in love with wine, too.

To learn more visit:

Insta: www.instagram.com/wine_by_glass/

More about the host Polly Hammond:

Polly is Founder and CEO of 5forests. She splits her time between Barcelona, Auckland, and Napa, consulting, writing, and speaking about the trends that impact today’s wine businesses. She’s an advisor to New Zealand Trade & Enterprise, host of Uncorked with the Italian Wine Podcast, cohost of the Real Business of Wine with Robert Joseph, and, occasionally, a knitter.

Polly is a graduate of the University of Southern California, where she earned degrees in International Relations and French. Those studies led to a deep and abiding love affair with behavioral Economics, and her wine work is based on insights into all the crazy and irrational reasons consumers engage with brands.

With over 20 years experience in growing successful companies, Polly knows first hand the challenges faced by independent businesses. She approaches each client experience with empathy and understanding for what it takes to adapt and thrive in the real world.

To learn more about Polly Hammond visit:

Twitter: @mme_hammond

Instagram: @5forests

website: 5forests.com/

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Until next time, Cin Cin!

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