Wine Club Symposium 2026

Rob McMillan is one of the country's leading wine-business analysts and the author of Silicon Valley Bank's annual State of the Wine Industry Report. With more than three decades in banking and decades focused specifically on wine, his research and perspective are widely used by winery owners, executives, investors, journalists, and industry organizations.

Paul Dugoni is a Senior Credit Analyst with Silicon Valley Bank’s Wine Division, combining nearly 15 years of wine industry experience with a background in financial analysis.

Paul provides SVB’s winery clients with strategic financial guidance, market insights, and data-driven analysis helping them navigate today’s market dynamics.

Paul previously held various roles at Hall Wines in St. Helena, most recently serving as Wine Club Manager. He holds a bachelor's degree in business from the University of the Pacific and an MBA in Finance from Saint Mary's College of California.

Jimmy Wu is President of vinSUITE and brings more than 20 years of experience in software, hospitality, and beverage alcohol technology. His career has included WinePOS, WineFetch, and WineCommerce, and he now leads vinSUITE with a focus on protecting wine club revenue and helping wineries grow sustainable direct-to-consumer sales.

Karin Strykowski has been in the wine industry for nearly 20 years, beginning in Navarro Vineyards' tasting room before moving into management and developing a passion for DTC wine sales and customer success. She later served as Director of Operations at VinoPRO and joined Wineshipping in 2022, where she now leads client training and helps winery teams succeed.

Erica Walter has more than 15 years of experience in winery email marketing. She creates and executes email strategies designed to grow engagement and sales and teaches winery teams how to do the same. She is the creator of PRESS SEND: Email Marketing Mastery for Wineries and regularly trains wineries on segmentation, copywriting, technology, and email design.

Megan Currie has spent nearly a decade in DTC wine sales, working across email marketing, tasting room operations, inventory, sales operations, and wine club membership. Her experience includes Turnbull Wine Cellars, Heitz Cellar, Stony Hill Vineyard, and Burgess Cellars.

Her work focuses on using member feedback, data, and better systems to improve club conversion and retention.

Pamela Snyder is CEO of DigiVino, where she helps wineries and beverage businesses use digital strategy to improve visibility and sales. Her work spans websites, search, digital marketing, email, social media, and the changing ways consumers discover brands online.

Van Potts is President and Founder of Preston-Layne & Partners. He works with beverage brands on sales, distribution, marketing, positioning, and long-term market strategy. After a career in consumer and pharmaceutical businesses, Van entered the wine industry in 2000 and founded Preston-Layne in 2003.

Liz Mercer grew up in Napa Valley and has spent more than 25 years in the wine industry. Her career has included leadership roles across tasting rooms, wine clubs, ecommerce, and winery operations on the Central Coast and in Napa Valley.

In 2024, she joined WISE full time as a Partner and DTC Coach. She holds a Master of Professional Studies in Food Business from the Culinary Institute of America.