The real MBA : Mastery in Bacchanalian Appreciation
I remember one day, aged fourteen, having lunch at a
restaurant near the European Commission in Brussels. As I ate my linguine, I
began to tune into the conversation at the next table, where a lively group of
people were chatting to each other in French, Spanish and Italian. I was
amazed. Here were all these people, from all these different backgrounds, and
yet somehow they understood each another. Their conviviality was magnetic. I
wanted to drink in the energy radiating from their table and I yearned to be
part of them. Since then, my life has been about assimilating as many languages
as possible and exploring the cultures that underpin them. When studying
history at undergraduate, I was always interested in identifying the customs,
behaviours and beliefs that defined how individuals and nations acted. In wine,
I see a lens through which to explore and understand the world around us. This
is a product which both creates a common language and simultaneously exposes us
to so many different countries, each of which has its own story. It invites us
to imbibe, literally and metaphorically, such a vast range of traditions,
cultures, geographies, customs and histories. It’s both educational and
experiential.
As I now pivot from a career in finance and think of
roles and industries which allow for my passion of cultural exploration, “story-telling”
and functioning as a bridge between different nationalities, I see in wine as a
potential home. As my own country, England, becomes increasingly acclaimed in
the wine world, questions of how to build brand, which customers to target and how
to lure consumers from countries which already grow their own wines all come to
bear.
As someone who spent her academic career analysing the cultural
influences driving people’s behaviours in the past and who has dedicated so
much of her free time to visiting countries and exploring what defines their respective
cultures, the idea of working with a product that is microcosm in which to
observe economic, demographic, cultural and social forces holds an appeal which
I can only hope will be further developed in this class.
That, or I’m just
trying to justify my early onset alcoholism.
No comments:
Post a Comment