Navigating a Dynamic Career in the Wine Industry

Ciro Pirone, VP of Business Development at PSP Global Wines, is a graduate of the Istituto Alberghiero of Salerno, Italy and an Italian Wine Ambassador (Vinitaly Wine Academy). With extensive experience in Italy, England and the US, Ciro's passion for wine, food and culture stems from his Italian upbringing.

Since moving to Boston in 1999, he has earned multiple certifications, including the Italian Wine Specialist and Italian Wine Scholar programs, along with the prestigious Italian Wine Ambassador certification. Ciro's career spans roles such as Italian Wine Specialist and Director of Italian Wines at Horizon Beverage and US Brand Manager for Arnaldo Caprai Winery.

In 2023, Ciro joined PSP Global Wines as VP of Business Development and partner, focusing on expanding the company's presence in the wine market, with a strong emphasis on Italian wines.

Ciro’s Journey from Graduating to Becoming the VP

Over the past 30 years, my journey began at Istituto Alberghiero, shaping my career in hospitality and wine. I spent summers working in Italy, gaining valuable experience before moving to London to study English. After several years working in restaurants across Italy, I moved to Boston. There, I worked for 17 years as an Italian Wine Specialist at Horizon Beverage. In June, I embraced a new opportunity as VP of Business Development at PSP Global Wines, an importer/distributor based in Massachusetts. I’m excited to apply my experience to expand the company’s market presence and contribute to its growth and evolution in the years ahead. I also teach Italian at UNH, sharing my story to inspire students.

Passion for Italian Wines

My journey in hospitality, especially in the US over the past 25 years, has shown me the deep love for Italy's culture, traditions, food and wines. I became passionate about learning Italian wines to share the story of Italy. I read every book I could find and joined educational organizations to deepen my knowledge, which I continue to expand. I spend my days and evenings engaging with customers and consumers through wine dinners, seminars and events, witnessing more people embrace Italian wines as their preferred choice. It’s been rewarding to see this shift over the years.

Integrating Teaching and Education into Ciro’s Professional Role

As much as I loved and still love learning, I hope to share my knowledge and passion for Italian wines. I use to be more active on that part outside of my work life but with a family and two kids it has become a lot more difficult to get involved in other activities. That being said whenever I am asked to participate in any educational projects revolving around Italian wines, I am available. As a matter of fact I am currently collaborating with Vinitaly International Academy in re-doing some of the video presentation for their course.

Curating a Diverse and High-Quality Portfolio of Wines

Good point as in my previous position I wasn’t involved in any way with anything outside the Italian portfolio, while in my new role at PSP Global Wines I also need to make sure to pay attention to our customer demand for good quality/price ratio wines from other countries such as the classic regions of France and Spain, as well as new world wine countries like Argentina, Chile and domestic USA. We directly import as much as we can but at the same time we scout from local suppliers to find other wines that our customers are looking for and listen to our team that are our feet, eyes and ears on the ground daily. As a small family owned company we try to curate a portfolio that delivers our own identity and philosophy

You have to be hungry but you also have to be patient, nothing comes overnight but if you really want it, you’ll get it.

Adapting to the Trends

Wine faces several challenges today, including competition from beer, spirits and RTDs (ready-to-drink beverages). Movements like "Dry January" and "Sober October" slow consumption, while the rise of low-alcohol or de-alcoholized wines impacts traditional wine sales. Additionally, younger generations are less loyal to brands and are more influenced by trends, with cocktails becoming popular in restaurants. Despite these challenges, if we continue to promote wine as a natural product to enjoy responsibly with food, I believe the future of wine can still be bright. There's work to be done, but the potential remains.

Fostering a Culture of Continuous Learning and Development within the Team

I am still fairly new at PSP as I have started my new position this past June, although together with the management team we all believe in creating a culture of continually learning and educating our team to be a better (and more educated) sales person which makes a huge difference out there in the market.

We do meetings and taste wines together as a group to get everyone’e feedback as we all have different backgrounds, experiences and palates and also deal with different customers. As a company we are only as good as our team and the folks that represent us, so we need to help everyone grow to grow as a company.

Building Strong Relationships with Suppliers and Clients in the Wine Industry

To me relationships account for 95 percent of it all. I don’t want to sound naive as I do know that having a strong portfolio of strong brands as well as correct pricing, a bigger sales team and all that can have a big impact in what a company can accomplish. It is also true that people buy from people they like and having a strong personal relationship that goes beyond the ’salesman/customer’ relationship will stick over the years. I have seen in over many years in the industry and even more so since my new position at PSP, many customers but truthfully friends, that believed in what I said and delivered before, continue to do so now. It is up to me (us) to continue and build daily a trustworthy relationship and support them (and viceversa).

It has been amazing to witness first hand. Same it is for suppliers, having strong relationships means that they will support us when needed and will work together for the common good.   

Tips and Tricks to Pursue a Career in the Wine Industry

I would say they need to be ready to commit 100 percent. It is a fun industry and anyone can make a successful career being in wine sales but they have to be prepared to work hard and smart and by that I don’t necessarily mean endless hours but have to understand to be available when we think we are off the clock.

As I mentioned before building true relationships is worth a lot in our industry, but in order to do that it’ll take time, lots of effort, investing in education and always be willing to support those that support you in return. You have to be hungry but you also have to be patient, nothing comes overnight but if you really want it, you’ll get it.