Sarah Campbell

Berman Wine Sales Professional

There are two distinct sides of the wine sales world – the seller and the buyer. The seller: the sales professional who goes into an off or on premise account who brings in the wine from the distributor. The buyer: the individual representing the account who purchases wine from the seller.

Berman Wine Division Sales Professional Sara Campbell has been on both sides of the equation. She began her career in the industry as a buyer for a high-end restaurant in the Toledo area. Sara shifted her focus from wine buyer to seller and for the last three years, she has been a sales professional for Heidelberg’s Berman Wine division in Toledo.

On either side of the transaction, each side needs to know their stuff but having done each position, Sara has an advantage that many other sales professionals do not. “My buying background helps me going into my accounts knowing what they are looking for,” says Sara. “There are specific ways that I can help them to make a big difference for their business. Those are the things that I always appreciated when I was a buyer.”

Sara’s sales route and customers are not strictly on premise accounts only. She has some off premise accounts and customers as well. While the products for both can be the same, the difference for selling the two is quite different. “It really is two different worlds,” says Sara. “With on premise there is more tasting, more training and having to be more specific in terms of what you are selling. The selling is very exact. With off premise, a lot of times it can be more volume and there is a distinctly different script in terms of what you’re selling.”

Regardless of what type of account that Sara is selling to, it is still selling and that means knowing her portfolio and knowing the products. “It all ends up being about the relationships that you make, whether it’s on or off premise,” says Sara. “It’s about what you know and how you can make sure that you’re the retailers #1 choice.”

One of the biggest inspirations for Sara is the weekly sales meetings where Heidelberg Sales Professionals are able to listen and share success in the market with co-workers to share best practices and motivate each other to consistently improve.

Sara has also been hard at work studying for her CSW (Certified Specialist of Wine) Certification. Offered by the Society of Wine Educators, It is an exam that tests a candidate’s wine knowledge and mastery of key elements within the worlds of viticulture and wine production. “It is a constant learning experience and the training is always on going,” says Sara. “Studying for the CSW, you really have to devote a lot of time into learning about the history of wine, grapes and countries of origin. It is a LOT of studying.”

A recent newlywed (September of 2017), Sara’s time out of the office is spent with her family (husband and four step children) and their two Labradoodles. When she is not studying for the CSW, you can often find her with her “two boys” at the local dog park!