Kendall-Jackson and Net Impact Engage Young Professionals in Competition to Elevate Sustainability

SANTA ROSA, Calif., November 14, 2017 /3BL Media/ - Net Impact, a global community of students and professionals, and Kendall-Jackson, the seminal winery in the Jackson Family Wines portfolio, have launched a sustainable wine case competition designed to harness the energy and ideas of young professionals dedicated to advancing sustainability. Julien Gervreau, Kendall-Jackson’s Director of Sustainability, made the announcement on the keynote stage at the 2017 Net Impact Conference on October 27th in Atlanta, GA.

“The Best Grapes are Green: A Sustainability Case Competition from Kendall-Jackson” invites teams of up to four participants to create and submit marketing campaigns that communicate with the winery’s significant sustainability progress and innovation for emerging consumers. Specifically, the campaigns will integrate the brand attributes of family, heritage, and quality that have established Kendall-Jackson as one of the most trusted names in California winemaking and the number one selling Chardonnay for 25 years running.

“Kendall-Jackson has an incredibly loyal consumer base, and we work hard to deliver a fantastic glass of wine to them year after year,” said David Bowman, Executive Vice President. “It’s important, too, that we tell the sustainability story of Kendall-Jackson in a way that resonates with our consumer, so we figured we’d go straight to the source. The Net Impact professionals are smart, motivated, and they understand the challenge at hand. We are excited about the ideas they will come up to help us align our sustainability strategy with the Kendall-Jackson messaging.” 

The Net Impact teams will be asked to respond to the prompt: What do you recommend Kendall-Jackson do to connect their sustainability commitment to consumers in the store? Student groups can submit initial campaign proposals until December 8, 2017. From the initial submissions, ten teams will be chosen to advance in the competition, and they will receive feedback and coaching from the Net Impact and Kendall-Jackson teams to refine their proposals into comprehensive marketing plans. The top three teams will be flown to Kendall-Jackson’s headquarters in Santa Rosa, California to present their campaigns, and two individual winners will receive paid internships to bring their ideas to life at Kendall-Jackson during the summer of 2018.

Family-owned Kendall-Jackson is a progressive leader in environmentally and socially responsible business practices. The Jackson family’s approach to sustainability is rooted in its multi-generational vision to make world-class wines while having a positive and lasting impact upon our natural resources, employees and communities. The full Jackson Family Responsibility Report is available here. In addition, Net Impact represents a unique portfolio of emerging leaders who care deeply about environmental and societal impact in the world.

“At Net Impact, we empower the emerging leaders in our network through programs that give them the opportunity to be at the forefront of social change,” said Liz Maw, CEO of Net Impact. “Kendall-Jackson is an iconic brand in an incredibly important sector of the environmental discussion – agriculture. This competition gives our teams a unique opportunity to go behind the scenes to learn not just about marketing, but about everything that goes into making wine sustainable, from vine to glass.”

To learn more about the case competition or to enter, please visit our website.

Contact:

Catherine Muriel, CMO                                                                        
Net Impact
cmuriel@netimpact.org
+415-495-4230 x314

Galen McCorkle
Jackson Family Wines
galen.mccorkle@jfwmail.com
707.529.5169
 

About Kendall-Jackson Winery
Kendall-Jackson is one of America’s most beloved family-owned and operated wineries. Founded by entrepreneur and visionary Jess Jackson and now led by his wife Barbara Banke and their children, Kendall-Jackson is based in Sonoma County and offers a range of acclaimed wines grown on the family’s estate vineyards along the coastal ridges of California. A leader in sustainable vineyard and winery practices including water and energy conservation and natural pest control, 100 percent of Kendall-Jackson’s vineyards in California are third party certified by SIP (Sustainable in Practice) and CCSW (Certified California Sustainable Winegrowing). Kendall-Jackson was recently named 2017 winery of the year by Wine Enthusiast Magazine, recognized as a benchmark in the California wine industry. Learn more online at www.kj.com, and follow Kendall-Jackson on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.

About Net Impact
Net Impact is a global community of students and professionals who aspire to be effective drivers of social and environmental change. Our programs—delivered from our headquarters in Oakland, CA, as well as globally through our 335+ chapters—connect our members to the skills, experiences and people that will allow them to have the greatest impact. With over 100,000 members, Net Impact takes on social challenges, protects the environment, invents new products and orients business toward the greater good. In short, we help our members turn their passions into a lifetime of world-changing action. Visit www.netimpact.org.