Under The Grape Vines

Ever feel like you have a great idea?

I am sure all of you have been in a planning meeting at work, church, chamber, etc. where someone comes up with a great idea.

You leave that meeting and that idea goes nowhere. Eight years ago, one of our staff members came up with a great idea for Dave and me. They recommended us writing a blog.

If you know my brother and me well, you would think this would be something very easy for us to do. Dave and I love talking to people. This is one of the best things about working at Duplin. You get to meet people from all over the world and learn something new. There is nothing better than sitting under our porch in North Myrtle Beach or Rose Hill enjoying a glass of wine with a new friend. The problem I have had with creating a blog is that I hate writing. It is just not natural for me. However, this was a great idea and I need to make sure that we move forward. I hope you all enjoy the first of many secrets that come from Under the Grape Vines at Duplin.

My father was very smart to place me in a different division than Dave when I came to work for the winery after college. He knew that two brothers did not need to work under the same roof. My father and uncle tried this in the 1970s. It did not work out and this is the reason that my uncle left the winery. Dave was put in charge of the production facility, vineyards and distributors/wholesalers. If you think of a human body, Dave is in charge of all the organs that keep the business alive. I was to learn from my father how to run everything a customer sees when visiting the winery in person, online, at an event, etc. My father was very good at his job, but his strong suit was public relations. The media seemed to gravitate toward his personality. I wish I had paid more attention during this training process, because this is my weakness. Dave and I are both very lucky to have a great team of individuals that actually run Duplin Winery. Our job now is trying to figure out how to grow the company. My job for the past three years has been making sure our new winery in North Myrtle Beach is run correctly. I have noticed that I have become very good at picking up trash. So much so, people think I am the janitor and turn me down when I ask if I could do their wine tasting.

I will continue to expand on the breakdown of the winery and really explain, over the next several blogs, why Dave and I have been fired so many times. While you are waiting, please come see me at Duplin. I would love to share a glass of wine with you and get to know a little more about you. No matter if this visit is in Rose Hill or North Myrtle Beach, please remember that Life is Sweeter with Duplin.

Jonathan Fussell