Assessing the introduction and development of a designation of origin from the firm's perspective: The case of the Ribera del Guadiana wine PDO

Abstract

Designations of origin are essential brands in the agro-food market to define marketing strategies. The establishment of designations of origin in Spain has taken place during the last two decades and agro-food products have been adapted to these protection forms. However, little is known about wineries manager’s point of view during the introduction process. In this work, we have analyzed the introduction and development of a designation of origin of wine from the company point of view. To this end, we carried out a qualitative analysis of interviews conducted to winemakers of this form of protection of food products. In the period studied, the consideration of the winemakers interviewed towards their designation of origin increased to a clear commitment to this form of protection of agro-food products. The majority opinion among the winemakers about what the PDO should offer the market leant more towards the product than the brand, reaching consumers with a quality product and from there to get it associated with its brand. This process has taken place during the period studied because while some winemakers still consider the product to be more important than the brand, others have already begun the process of promoting and strengthening their brands, aware that the consumer already perceives the product's quality. It can be concluded therefore that the origin attribute is very important for brands belonging to the agro-food sector, useful to create an origin-based marketing strategy.