2024, THE YEAR OF PINOT!
Welcome all, to the post event report for the 2024 Pinot Palooza Tour and OMG, it was a big one.
Not only did we welcome back our kiwi brethren, for the first time since 2019, but twice used the combined forces of MOULD & Pinot Palooza to deliver some epic experiences as well as see the biggest attendee numbers we’ve seen in both Perth and Brisbane, then see Melbourne reach numbers not seen since 2018.
Throughout the tour we gained a huge amount of insights, facts and stats which we’ve compiled here as a summary of the festival that was. There is a lot here and do take the time to read it all, so grab a glass, sit back and relax, and let's get nerdy. But one thing we can again say is …
“Pinot Palooza remains a 12,000 + person audit on the current state of play of Pinot Noir on the East Coast of Australia.”
Sure, that may sound like a bold statement but the truth is in the sales data and considering the volume of transactions, and various age groups we attract (particularly younger), we’ll stand by it. What is super clear is that our audience is highly engaged, curious and seeking direct connection to the movers and makers who make the best Pinot Noir going around. And have a heck of a lot of fun doing it.
Again, we saw drinkers want to connect and buy direct and despite the economic ‘doom and gloom’ commentary we read so much about, we saw greater increase in spends on wine in almost all cities.
Ok, enough of the preamble, let’s get stuck in ….
Before we deep dive into each city, there were a few changes /additions to the overall program this year, primarily running two MOULD x Pinot Palooza events in both Perth and in Brisbane. The combined audience force taps into both our key categories and again delivered in spades. Its a wonderful way to service the smaller capital cities.
We again offered a tote bag (and cooler bag) at entry to encourage attendees to purchase and sure enough, when you give someone a bag, they fill it.
In addition to this year's campaign, we saw our kiwi brethren return as our “FEATURE REGION”. They hadn’t been back in force since 2019, and having historically been such a key part of the event so to welcome them back was a joy. And yes, the people returned their efforts in kind.
Then, come event days we had the amazing Samantha Payne (SYD) and Shanteh Wale (BNE & MEL) host a heap of wine chats throughout the sessions to further amplify the wines on show. Much love and thanks to them both.
And finally, you would have seen we went HARD on content this year capturing and documenting the peoples and personalities of the show; punter and producer alike.
It was a big one indeed full of multiple highlights.
PERTH
My goodness we love Perth. Yes, it's a long way to go but for those who made the journey can attest, they really know how to bring the pinot party and the overall good times. Not only do they show up with a smile on their faces, but they come to spend and spend hard (and then thank you for it!).
The weather gods smiled brightly on us with 25 degree days in August which gave us the opportunity to utilize the entire outdoor space and further encourage sales on the day.
As a MOULD x Pinot Palooza, the overall sales breakdown was virtually 50/50 to cheese and wine but with a higher spend than last year up 10%.
This city continues to reward those who make the effort and in 2025, we’ll be moving to a larger space to accommodate the masses.
For those who make the journey, the other highlights are of course us hanging in the same hotel and the ‘party bus’ commute to and from the venue!
3200
Attendees joined us!
(up 25% on 2023)
$137.50
avg spend per person
(one of the highest we've seen for all our events)
$9,630
average sales per wine vendor.
This highest of all cities
SYDNEY
We again kicked off the East Coast tour in Sydney at our traditional home at Carriageworks.
As always, Sydney brings the consistent party with us seeing virtually the same number of attendees as we did last year, and the two events previous.
The main difference is of course, they are spread over three sessions giving producers ample time to tell their story.
This was virtually a repeat of results from last year with each however, there was a boost in wine sales which is always good to see.
Of course the final Saturday afternoon session is always the pinot party and a reminder of what the Pinot Palooza vibe is all about.
A great way to kick off the east coast tour.
2400
Attendees joined us
$121
avg spend per person
$3,850
avg sales per vendor
BRiSBANE
In the words of Nelly, “it’s getting hot in here” and sure, Brisbane was a warm one but for the locals, it was just another weekend of fun and festivities.
We know this town lurvs Pinot Noir and we also know they love cheese (potentially) even more. So, after a sell out at MOULD in May earlier in the year, we thought we’d roll out the combined “X” version and move up the road to the Exhibition Buildings.
The result? Our biggest event in the city ever and the highest average spend per person of the entire year. In fact, the saturday day session hit $176.50. Just. Wild.
In short, they came, they bought cheese and grabbed at least 2 bottles of wine, a heap of other loot and thanked you all on the way out. Happy days indeed!
Will we be doing this model again in 2025?
Heck. Yes as there is even more room to grow both from an attendee point of view, and producer.
Stay tuned!
3050
Peoples joined us
(literally double what we did in 2023)
$144
avg spend per person
(the highest of all REVEL events ever)
$5,330
avg sales per wine vendor
MELBOURNE
“The sun always shines for Pinot Palooza in Melbourne” is something Dan loves to say on the regular.
Well it certainly did this time but brought the heat with it. Its rare for Melbourne to have two days of over 35 in a row and they just happened to land on our weekend.
The grand old dame of the Royal Exhibition Building does not have aircon (how could you cool it?) but it did have high ceilings which helped. But there is no denying, the heat hampered wine sales by as much as 20%.
As disappointing as that was, we’ve always believed Pinot Palooza is more than just wine sales. It's about connection and celebration, engagement and getting people in front of you.
And that we did with close to 3800 coming through the doors; the biggest of the tour and the highest attendance since 2018. That is something to celebrate indeed!!
It was also the first time since 2019 that we used the entire building which enabled ample space for all to spread out, take their time and enjoy the summer styled vibes.
And as the dance floor on the final session can attest, it was a vibe indeed.
All events mean a lot, but this one was extra special.
3750
Attendees joined us
$106.50
avg spend per person
(wine sales pp were down 20% due to heat)
$3,100
avg sales per vendor.
Again, down due to both no show rate and heat impacting wine sales
Consistently, Pinot Palooza attracts a younger audience every year with up to 55% under the age of 35 with 55-60% of that age group being women. Overall, the percentage of women is close to 60%.
What was also fascinating about this year was the large percentage of newcomers to the festival with close to 60% of ticket purchasers saying this year was their first time joining us.
So what does this mean?
A highly engaged, curious and purchase motivated audience keen to get to know the best makers of Pinot Noir going around.
They’re technically savvy, highly social and are looking for a greater type of wine experience.
They travel, are interested in exploring their own backyard (and beyond) and love to talk about it amongst their friends.
Word of mouth is still the most potent form of communication about our event followed by our own database and social channels.
Like everyone, their lives are busy, stressful and challenging so they’re looking for experiences outside of their world. And will spend it.
In short, it’s the audience we’ve always wanted.
50％
Under the age of 35
(you know, all those young people who aren't into wine 😳)
75％
Of our audience is under the age of 45
64％
of our audience identify as women
68％
Identify as Women in the under 35 age group
Ok, get ready to get really really wine nerdy for never before have we had such transparency over what is happening on event days thanks to not only the sales on the day, but people's choice and more.
There is a huge amount of data from the campaign and we’ve done our best to provide you with what we believe is the most insightful and meaningful.
Alongside the various charts, do have to make note of some of the caveats mainly around the number of vendors as some regions were only represented by one or two (history is made by those who show up afterall)
But all in all, it shows a fascinating insight into the current state of play of Pinot Noir on the east coast of Australia, which regions wine drinkers are seeking, the styles they’re after, and the people and personalities they engage with.
What is the most exciting is seeing how our audience is seeking a broad range of wine styles and regions; discovery and access has always been a hallmark of Pinot Palooza.
Of course, the numbers and charts also highlight the potency and power of partnerships.
With the feature region for 2024 being, New Zealand, and the marketing push behind it, directly impacts wine sales on the day. .
Yep, there is much to deep dive in so enjoy!
12400+
tickets sold
$124
average spend per person
5% down on 2023 but we put this down to the heat of the Melbourne event hampering wine sales
$85
spent on wine per person
23,560+
Bottles of wine sold and consumed on event days
$42.50
Average RRP of Pinot Noir sold on event days.
$4950
average sales per vendor per city
(this 10% - 15% down on the previous year which we put down to hot weather in Melbourne, not economic pressure)
1.9
Bottles purchased / consumed per person on event days
205+
different Pinot Noirs were on tasting
27
wine regions were represented
19%
Increase in overall wine sales on event days from 2023!
NOTE: Perth and Brisbane were the MOULD x Pinot Palooza format where there are less producers and no wine bar so people purchase to consume on the day as well as for take home sales. But yes, this is the model moving forward.
We've broken this down further than last year to show how our audience are looking for more than just wine though not at the expense of their spend on wine.
55% of ALL wine sales were made up by the Top 3 Regions.
*NOTE: Some regions (Robe, USA for example had only one producer)
Based on total bottle sold on event days.
Spreading the good Pinot Noir word is something we’re particularly proud about and 2024 was no exception.
Partnering with our agency, Common State, the word was spread far and wide and across both traditional and social channels.
Then, backed by a performance marketing campaign, run by Bolster, we reached even more people. Whilst Facebook remains the highest conversion platform, Instagram continues to highlight its importance especially in relation to awareness. Find them on Instagram, sell to them on Facebook seems to be the trend we’re seeing.
In addition to the press coverage, we really ramped up our social media content with producer interviews, profiles, and more.
We saw a huge increase in engagement and reached broader, and newer, audiences as a result.
We captured SO MUCH footage from festival days and thanks to our good friend and host with the most, Renee Buckingham, the energy and verve of the festival was clearly communicated.
This gives us a huge amount of content to share in the lead up to future events.
In addition to the press coverage, we really ramped up our social media content with producer interviews, profiles, and more.
We saw a huge increase in engagement and reached broader, and newer, audiences as a result.
We captured SO MUCH footage from festival days and thanks to our good friend and host with the most, Renee Buckingham, the energy and verve of the festival was clearly communicated.
This gives us a huge amount of content to share in the lead up to future events.
PRESS & DIGITAL COVERAGE
29, 842, 140
Cumulative PR reach
51
unique pieces of media
4
TV breaks
6,045,000
Impressions from digital advertising
1,395,000
social accounts reached
64%
of ticket purchases came from our 'owned' audience highlighting how potent and large it is
For the first time since 2019, we welcomed back our Kiwi brethren in force thanks to support and investment by New Zealand Wine Growers and NZ Trade & Enterprise.
New Zealand producers have long been part of the festival and in year one, made up 50% of the producers. Spicy cough years certainly got in the way of their return so to have them back, was just the best. We missed them and clearly our audience did too.
If we’ve said it once, we’ve said it 100 times, the more we speak about a region in the lead up the more sought after they are on the day. This campaign was no exception.
Whilst many of our kiwi mates acknowledge they were a little ‘Palooza rusty’, kicking off in Sydney was a great way to dust of the festival cobwebs and get the pinot eye in. Then, of course, following on in Brisbane and Melbourne events, the sales speak for themselves and in some cases, couldn’t have been higher if they had enough stock.
The big takeaway was that New Zealand was the highest spend on wine per person for the East Coast and almost double of the next closest being Tasmania, then Adelaide Hills.
(For the Victorians amongst you, take VERY stong note of this as you aren’t in the Top 3 and really only one in the Top 5!)
This was a grand return indeed and no doubt a result of our friends not only ‘showing up’, but having it backed with a marketing campaign to boot.
Just check out some of the stats.
EDMs
New Zealand predominately featured in EDMs at each significant milestone from launch, to 'Festival Highlights', 'Line Up', '10 Days to Go' and 'This weekend' calls to action. This was both targeted to our databases in each individual city as well as national pushes at launch.
185,000
Emails sent noting New Zealand with an average open rate of 37% and click through of 4%.
This is well above industry averages
SOCIALS
In short, we flooded the socials with a range of targeted content all aimed at drawing awareness to the NZ activation and celebrating and championing the producers who were joining us.
With our 'event day' host, Renee Buckingham, we plugged the 'Kiwis' are back' across multiple posts as well as producer interviews and more.
Add to that, we asked a range of local sommeliers to pick heir favourite wineries in the lead up featuring many New Zealand producers.
535,730
Reach on Instagram alone and on average 54% of this reached new audiences highlighting how often the content was shared.
ON THE DAY
The New Zealand area was allocated prime positioning on the event floor and highlighted by three large "Welcome to New Zealand" banners that could be viewed from across all corners of the venues. Drawing this attendee attention was paramount with such a strong group of producers joining us on events days, it was certainly a high traffic area.
Add to this, wine communicators Samantha Payne (SYD) and Shanteh Wale (BNE & MEL), ran a dedicated New Zealand wine 'class' per session which not only highlighted the producers present, but drove further traffic to them post.
SPECIAL STATS!
While there a number of key stats an insights above, here are a few other observations from the campagne that specifically highlight the value of the New Zealand Feature Region investment
24%
Of all wine sales on event days were from New Zealand. In Sydney, this was almost 30%
$17
Average spent on NZ Wine per person. This is almost double of the next closest region (Tasmania)
$50.50
Average RRP per wine sold on event days, second only to Tasmania at $51
(who says young people don't spend money on wine!)
3 X
Return on investment in wine sales for the New Zealand Wine
If anything, what 2024 taught us was the power of collaboration and when we combine the powers of both MOULD and Pinot Palooza together, it results in not only greater attendee numbers, but more wine and cheese sales for vendors across the board.
So, as we look to 2025, we'll be running this MOULD x Pinot Palooza model in each city we visit.
Focusing on our strongest markets of Brisbane, Perth and Melbourne means we consolidate the message and fully focus our energies into them.
Don't get us wrong, we love Sydney but to be blatantly honest, it has become un-economical for us to continue.
It is just too expensive and even with increased attendee numbers for both MOULD and Pinot Palooza, it is just not viable.
KEEN TO JOIN US?
Simply register your interest via the link below and we'll be in touch with further details.
REGISTER FOR 2025 HERE
Yep, cool Dan. These numbers are all good but what does it all mean?
Fair question.
We know its tough out there and discretionary spend is limited but from what we see, from a festival perspective, and the spend on wine, is that people are, and continue to be pumped for all things wine AND want to celebrate it the same way they consume it, socially.
Yes, we’ve been banging on about this for years but judging by all the new, younger, people attending this year, the brand continues to be strong and if anything, getting bigger and bigger every year.
Young people ARE into wine. They DO want to meet you AND buy direct. And know your story.
THIS 👏 IS WHAT 👏WE’VE 👏ALWAYS. WANTED!
So, when things feel tough throughout the year, remember that close to 15,000 people took time out of their day to come and meet YOU. That is so wonderful and powerful.
And they do so as we all come together in collaboration, not competition.
We’ve all made that a matra.
As always, a huge thank you to all who joined us on event days. We know its a big few days on tour and we’re forever grateful you took the time.
Also, as you know, this was Dan’s final Pinot Palooza Tour since setting it up back in 2012.
Only ever missing one in person (Auckland!), over 55 have been held under his tenure across the globe. Epic.
As he said in his final briefing in Melbourne, Pinot Palooza has grown and grown beyond any one brand or business and certainly beyond any one person. Its a community of like minded pinot noir souls and we can’t waiting to continue that vision into the future.
Thank you all so much for being with us this year.
Here’s to another great one in 2025
Jess, Steph (and Dan in absentia!)