LAKE NORMAN CHAMBER of COMMERCE
Business Expo 2014 Friday, March 7, 2014
11 am - 5 pm Davidson College Baker Sports Complex • Belk Arena
Open to the Public • Free Admission To register and for more information, call 704-892-1922
Visit www.LakeNormanChamber.org
Presented by
Lena and Tom Harding of Huntersville have finally realized a California dream from long ago.
Now, let’s switch scenes. The Hardings moved from Los Angeles to Huntersville (a very sound decision, by the way) to raise their family and set down some deep roots. Tom and Lena are now retired, and an empty nest looms. What to do for the next act in life? That’s when the California wine-dreaming thing kicked in again. The question was how to realize it without disturbing those comfortable roots they’d put down. A little study of wine history and the answer was clear; Tom set up as a negotiant.
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Let’s look at history. Going back to the early 1600s, what is now the prestigious region of Bordeaux was a sleepy old place producing wines for local sipping. At the time the Dutch were prodigious traders worldwide. They knew little about wine other than they enjoyed what they found in Bordeaux. So, they worked a deal with growers to buy wine directly from them, and then they took care of all the logistics and marketing that got the wine from Bordeaux and into goblets back home in Holland. The Dutch were the first negotiants.Each party contributed what they were good at, and the total system was a winner for everyone. This is a system that’s still alive and well today with one or two updates. And it’s the updates that allow the Hardings to carve out their niche. In any kind of business system like this, communications between all the players is key to smooth operation.