Marketing Icewine to Japanese Tourists in Niagara: The Case of Inniskillin Winery

Inniskillin Winery is at the forefront of an expanding wine tourism region in the Niagara Peninsula. This paper focuses on Inniskillin's efforts to adopt consumer‐led strategies to market Icewine to increasing numbers of Japanese tourists. Produced after the grapes have frozen on the vine, Icewine is an exclusive premium product. In a society where the price of the gift has become a barometer of the sender's sincerity, Icewine is well suited for the traditional Japanese custom of gift giving. This paper examines how Inniskillin's customer‐led marketing strategy matches with the psychological background of the Japanese target segment enabling the winery to sell 80–90% of all Icewine produced to its Japanese tourists.