Q & A

The role of VINEX is to provide a secure and credible trading Exchange where you can connect efficiently and successfully complete negotiations, supported by a sampling approval process. VINEX reduces your risk and ensures legal, ethical and fairness in trading, through to contract execution, by providing:

Yes, you need to first register and receive VINEX approval. Then you can list your sourcing requirements and request samples from members responding to your listing, and complete a purchase. To search the Exchange and request samples from another member's listing you first must upgrade your membership to either Standard or Premium. VINEX is a business to business trading exchange and therefore you must be a proprietor or a representative of an organisation in or associated with the wine industry. Your registration enables VINEX to verify your details, providing confidence to other members seeking to trade with you.

The companies supplying through the Exchange have all been verified by VINEX and must be registered members. They include wine (and other grape derived product) producers, cooperatives, wine brokers and contract winemakers who have available supply. Each member has a VINEX profile which displays their membership status, country of origin and transaction history. Sellers are located across all regions and markets.

Yes. You can source, or search and purchase different types of grape derived product, including juice, must, concentrate, flavoured wines, fortifieds and grape spirit. VINEX does not trade grapes or bottled product. In addition to searching the Exchange you can also encourage suppliers to respond to your specific requirements by adding your own requirement listing on the Exchange. VINEX Regional Managers can assist with more information.

When you become a registered member (it’s free), you can add listings on the Daily Offers board, which is an edited quick and easy highlighted listing, or on the Main Exchange using one of the trading methods. If you purchase a 90 Day Premium Trial membership you can access an additional trade method (Forward Contracts), the Sub Exchange and invite ONLY your preferred sellers to respond to your specific listing requirements.

None. You will not be invoiced any fees on completing a purchase. However, you must first register and receival VINEX approval for membership. If you want to search the Exchange and place bids, make counter-offers or request samples on wines listed by other members you must first upgrade and subscribe to a Standard or Premium membership.

Fees & Rates Summary

• No Listing or Contract Fees
• Membership Subscription Fees Apply
• Pre-Harvest Forward Contract Fees Apply
• Listing Promotion Fees are optional
• Fees may apply for other VINEX services

The Sub EX is available to Premium members only. Here you can add your sourcing requirements and restrict your universe of suppliers to only those in the industry you know or would like to approach. Your listings are locked and restricted in view (no price or volume details are displayed), and cannot be accessed from the Main Exchange. Through your listing you can confidentially invite up to 8 suppliers per listing (search by Country and Company Name) to respond. This enables you to pre-qualify the members you would like to notify and trade with. The Sub Exchange provides you with control and efficiency, whilst creating competitive tension amongst those invited to respond to your sourcing requirements. Your member anonymity is retained throughout to ensure a fair and unbiased negotiation to secure your supply.

Yes. Sampling is an important part of completing a successful purchase and many suppliers will provide samples on request. If a supplier chooses not to provide samples when listing and negotiating with you, they must still supply a final sample and technical specification declaration for your approval after completing a trade, as part of the Clearing & Settlement process. All completed trades are subject to your approval of a final sample (if applicable) and specification declaration. A member's first sample request must be approved by VINEX.

The quality levels ranging from A - Luxury down to E - Generic are broad categories within which wines must be classified to provide an indication of quality. Just as price may also indicate a quality assessment, the A - E categories are another convenient way to search and compare wines of interest. Of course, you will ultimately make your own determination as to the quality, style and value of a wine. Below are some guidelines to consider when listing your wine requirements and selecting an appropriate quality level.   

VinScore is an independent evaluation service provided by VINEX contracted qualified tasting experts. The service is only available for 'Finished-Bottle Ready' wines. Each wine is given a rating (within its quality level) out of 5.0. It’s an objective assessment designed to assist you by providing a valuable unbiased filter to compare and select wines and save time. Sellers are not obligated to purchase or display a VinScore rating.

The role of VINEX is to provide a secure and credible trading Exchange for you to connect efficiently and successfully complete negotiations, supported by a sampling approval process. VINEX reduces your risk and ensures legal, ethical and fairness in trading through to contract execution, by providing:

Trading Rules 

Trading activity is monitored and reviewed

Member Feedback

Feedback is encouraged and reviewed

Member Ranking and Profile

All members are ranked by trading activity

Sampling Restrictions and Monitor

Requests are restricted for new members

Regional Managers’ Feedback

VINEX meets with members in-market

Clearing and Settlement

Completed trades are subject to trading rules 

No Listing or Negotiation Fees

No. You only need to register, be approved by VINEX and start selling. Registration is free. VINEX is a business to business trading exchange and therefore you must be a sole proprietor or a company representative, in or associated with, the wine industry. Selling fees only apply to completed contracts.

Fees & Rates Summary

• No listing or negotiation fees
• Service fees apply to completed trades
• Pre-Harvest Forward Contract fees apply
• Membership subscription fees are optional
• Listing promotion fees are optional
• Fees may apply for other VINEX services 

Buyers purchasing through the Exchange have all been verified by VINEX and must be either Standard, Premium or Corporate members. They include exporters, importers, bottling facilities, retailers and wine (or other bulk grape product) producers who have supply requirements. Buyers are across all regions and markets.

Yes. Through the Exchange you can add listings for all types of grape derived product including juice, must, concentrate, flavoured wines, fortifieds and grape spirit. VINEX does not trade grapes or bottled product. There are options to customise your listings, including organic, kosher, crude, faulty and other variations. VINEX Regional Managers can assist with more information.

You will be invoiced a service fee payable to VINEX on a Sale & Purchase Contract. Service fees are based on a percentage of the total value of each trade and are volume discounted – the larger the volume, the smaller the percentage fee payable. Fees also apply for other VINEX services including securing a Pre-Harvest forward contract. A full list of Rates & Fees can be found under Services here

Sampling is an important part of completing a successful trade. While you can choose not to supply samples when you add a listing and negotiate with a buyer, you must provide a final sample for the buyer’s acceptance as part of the Clearing & Settlement approval process. If samples are made available when negotiating a trade you are 300% more likely to complete a trade.

When adding a listing to the Exchange you can indicate if samples are available or not. The supply of samples to interested buyers is at your cost, including the use of your preferred freight carrier. VINEX will advise you of the buyer’s request and provide despatch address details along with labels to print and apply to each bottle. VINEX coordinates the delivery which is tracked through your central dashboard.

The Sub EX is available to Premium members only. Here you can add your available wines and restrict your universe of buyers to only those in the industry you would like to approach. Your listings are locked and restricted in view (no price or volume details are displayed), and cannot be accessed from the Main Exchange. Through your listing you can confidentially invite up to 8 members (search by Country and Company Name) to respond. If the buyer you're looking to invite is not in the VINEX list, there's a request button for VINEX to invite the buyer onto the exchange to view your listing. When adding your available wines you can pre-qualify the members you would like to notify and trade with. The Sub Exchange provides you with control and efficiency, whilst creating competitive tension amongst those invited to respond to your listings. Your member anonymity is retained throughout to ensure a fair and unbiased negotiation to secure a sale.

The quality levels ranging from A - Luxury down to E - Generic are broad categories within which wines must be classified to provide buyers with an indication of the seller's quality assessment. Just as your price will also indicate a quality assessment, the A - E categories are another convenient way buyer's can search and compare wines of interest. Of course, buyer's will ultimately make their own determination as to the quality, style and value of a wine. Below are some guidelines to consider when listing your wine and selecting an appropriate quality level.   

VinScore is an independent evaluation service provided by VINEX to increase a buyer’s interest in your listings. VinScore ratings are only available for 'finished/bottle ready' wines. Each wine is given a rating (within its quality level) out of 5.0. With a VinScore your finished wine listings will be more appealing and provide an unbiased filter to help buyers compare listings of interest. While you’re not obligated to purchase or display a VinScore, it has been shown that listings are 300% more likely to lead to a completed trade. 

Yes. VINEX provides a service called VinValuation – it’s free and you don’t need to supply a sample. Based on the wine’s listing details, VINEX will respond to you with a VinValuation after taking into account all market and current trading factors. The advice will advise a valuation price range along with commentary on the prevailing market conditions.