International Women's Day 2022

by Stacy Rose March 07, 2022

International Women's Day #BreaktheBias

Tuesday March 8th marks International Women’s Day – a day to amplify and reinforce our commitment to creating a world where difference is valued and celebrated.

This year’s theme: #BreakTheBias.

As humans, we all carry unconscious biases, and while awareness of this is important, it is not enough. ‘Getting curious’ about our personal biases, and learning how to counter-act them is where change begins. Check out an important video on common biases below.

As a vertically integrated agri-food business where farming, winemaking, bottling and direct sales all occur onsite, our reach into the community for suppliers and services is substantial. These partnerships are integral to the sustainability of our business and we deeply value our long standing partners and the interconnected nature of our shared businesses.

What better way to #breakthebias than to celebrate and spotlight some important relationships we have with women in vital and adjacent industries to our own.

Beth Bierema - Photographer, Food/Drink Stylist and founder of Foody First

foodyfirst.com

Job Description: Foody First specializes in professional photography and content creation for food and beverage brands. We also shoot on-location at wineries, restaurants, hotels, and many others. Our main goal is to elevate a brand's presence through exceptional styling and photography that will attract and engage an audience and lead them to take action.

Words to live by: Never give up on your dreams. Work at them a little each day and you will get there. It's not if, it's when!

Valeria Neumann (Venegas) - Vice-President Stoney Creek Glass

stoneycreekglass.ca

Valeria Neumann

Job Description: Basically I run around the world buying cool glass and meeting really fascinating people who teach me things I never knew I thought would be interesting. I manage a fantastic sales team and we work together to ensure sales and sales development (marketing, strategy etc) are up to snuff. And lastly I manage the flow of production and new innovation, new products, new ways of doing our job (easer not harder) and keeping everything fresh and exciting!

Advice/Words to live by: Hmmm…that’s a good one. Don’t Give Up.

I think it's safe to say that being a woman in most fields is daunting. I mean it wasn’t that long ago that we came into the work force, and it was very recent where women became confident enough to say that we belonged in the workforce. Personally I can think a million different times and situations where I was “earning” my stripes when I thought about throwing in the towel. But I got lucky, I had great influences and met some pretty incredible other women in my same situation. And we fed off each other. We understood the guilt of not being supermom, and the fear of failing in our work. I can think of a plethora of women in the beverage industry that kick serious ass. And I look up to them. I admire their strength and in that way I found some of my own.

Lastly - don’t take it too seriously. Honestly - tomorrow is another day, you’ll get there.

Michelle Paquette - Account Manager Artcraft Label

artcraftlabel.ca

Michelle Paquette

Job Description: I’m known as the first point of contact for new accounts at Artcraft. I’m responsible for onboarding customers who come to us via my cold calls, word-of-mouth referrals, online search engines, etc…

I manage the flow of that first introduction to estimating to order processing (among other tasks in between), working closely with my incredible production team to ensure a smooth transition. I also occasionally make deliveries in exchange for wine :)

Words to live by: In my field, rejection is something very inevitable, and happens quite often. Sometimes you just don’t get through to the right people, or the timing isn’t in your favour. The key is not letting rejection affect you negatively.

While your conversion rate is a direct correlation to your success, I believe the real success comes from letting yourself learn and evolve through those opportunities to alter your strategy for the next call.

Marisa Renaud - Manager of Partnerships, Independent Brands: Blacksquare

blacksquare.io

Marisa Renaud

Job Description: - is responsible for the acquisition and maintenance of strategic relationships with corporate customers, marketing partners, winery vendors, and community organizations across Independent brands (Kwaf, Wine Collective & Canada Craft Club).

Words to live by: Above all things, be true, be true to yourself, your values and your convictions.

Wilma Snippe - President H2Only Inc.

h2only.ca

Wilma Snippe

Words to live by: Like any other business owner, you need to be passionate both about your product and the people you serve to be successful. We started H2Only 28 years ago because we believed that pure water was essential to good health. We are delighted to know that many people across the Niagara Region have taken the most important step for their health by choosing H2Only water. Whole families have grown up on our water and that feels pretty good!

Megan Colburn - Key Account Manager, Wolfpack Packaging

wolfpack.ca

Megan Colburn

Job Description: Manage customer packaging needs with a main focus in the winery/brewery/cidery area.

Words to live by: Love what you do and you will succeed. Never be afraid to be your authentic self and never take 'no' as a first and final answer. The reference about 'loving what you do' is my favourite part because - If you love what you do even the hard days are good.