Dublin-based WineSpark founder Eamon FitzGerald is far from the first person to believe he can revolutionise the wine industry. But through a careful investment strategy, and refusing to compromise on his values, he is adamant change is absolutely possible.
Working as a management consultant for accenture, FitzGerald couldn’t help but let his mind wander towards his own grape Escape. he began running a blog under that name, charting the journey “from the corporate world through to following my dream in the wine industry”.
His career took him to London. Passionate about wine, he became a customer of wine club and retailer Naked Wines. After posting a review of one of the company’s events online,he met its founder Rowan Gormley for a beer.Just four months later he was working at the company and, soon after, took on the mantle of managing director.
When he left the business in 2024, it had scaled to £100 million (€114 million) in annual revenue and boasted more than 250,000 subscribers.
Coming back to Ireland, fitzgerald had a dream to create something new, a business which woudl deliver for customers and winemakers alike.
Other businesses have tried to do the same in the past, he says, but have ended up compromising and selling out the values they started with.
Online wine club WineSpark was the result of this ambition. He set up the business in 2021 after securing €300,000 from wine makers across the globe. Further funding rounds fuelled the company to reach annual revenues of €1 million this year.
In November, it was revealed the latest fundraising round valued the company at €8 million, following a €1.5 million investment as, once again, FitzGerald spurned traditional investors and venture capital.
He had initially expected it would be a “tall order” to fill the round, but FitzGerald quickly saw 77 of his customers and suppliers from across the world invest an average of €19,500. The funding is allowing the business to expand into the UK market.
He says the decision not to opt for institutional investors is a conscious one, based on prior experiance in the sector and on keeping the business true to its mission.
“People dream of becoming an entrepreneur and of starting their own business. They want to have their own independence,and to be in charge of themselves. But the reality of it is indeed, the minute you take someone else’s money, you’re now working for them.”
Entrepreneurs, he says, need to make sure their investors are aligned with the long term outcome of their business.
“You should be prioritising long term loyalty of your customers over short-term targets” as the company starts out, he believes.
“Far too many companies are stuck in a cycle of trying to hit next quarter sales to satisfy an investor or a share price, when it goes against the long-term interest of the customer.”
For this reason, having his customers as his fellow shareholders creates a perfect alignment for the company, but the lack of institutional investment is certainly not dampening FitzGerald’s ambition for growth.
He predicts the company will triple its employee headcount from five to 15 over the next three years and expects it to reach €50 million in turnover by 2030, driven by its new
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