Interview Summary
Mr. Guilisasti recounts his life in the wine industry, joining Concha y Toro as a young man and rising through the ranks in the company as well as an organic winemaking group, Viñedos Emiliana. He attributes their success to principles inherited from his father: a commitment to vertical integration, a focus on the export market, and a diversified wine portfolio. In doing so, he highlights the “long-term orientation” of family-controlled firms as one the main sources of their competitive advantage. Mr. Guilisasti highlights business concerns that are unique of the wine business: the importance of branding and name recognition, advertising and marketing, and professional endorsements. He also details the Chilean business climate and the benefits of operating in a free market economy.
Distribution is a key factor for any brand. For a long time, we focused on securing adequate distribution for our wines, so that they would have sufficient consumer penetration. ...we built suitable partnerships with distributors…
Additional Resources
Michael Stott, "Chile winemaker Concha y Toro heads further upmarket, helped by a French château."
Financial Times, March 10, 2023
Concha y Toro [HBS Case]
José del Pozo, Historia del vino chileno: Desde la época colonial hasta hoy. Santiago: LOM ediciones, 2014
Interview (Spanish), Reportajes la tercera edicion impresa, May 19, 2012
Antoine van Agtmael, The Emerging Markets Century: How a New Breed of World-Class Companies Is Overtaking the World. Free Press, c.2007
Sebastián Vergara, “El mercado vitivinícola mundial y el flujo de inversión extranjera a Chile,” Serie Desarrollo Productivo No. 102, CEPAL. Unidad de Inversiones y Estrategias Empresariales, 2001
María de la Luz Hurtado, Paula Edwards, and Rafael Guilisasti, Historia de la televisión chilena entre 1959 y 1973. CENECA, c.1989
Viña Concha y Toro (Chile), La historia Viña Concha y Toro fue fundada por el Conde y Marqués don Melchor de Concha y Toro y don Ramón Subercaseaux en los fértiles campos de propiedad de éste último, en Pirque (Llano de Maipo) en 1883. Santiago: Impr. Universo, 1965
Interview Citation Format
"Interview with Rafael Guilisasti, interviewed by Andrea Lluch, Santiago, Chile, December 18, 2008, Creating Emerging Markets Project, Baker Library Historical Collections, Harvard Business School, http://www.hbs.edu/creating-emerging-markets/."
