Building Relationships with Food & Wine

One of the best relationship builders happens when you combine food and wine.

I have been in business some 40 plus years now and one of the most important things I had to learn early on was that relationships are essential to the success of any business. Not only do you have to create the relationships, but you must maintain them as well. Just having a list of people in your contact file means nothing if you aren’t in contact with them and offering your assistance in some way. Beyond the business aspect of building a relationship is to make sure I convert the relationship into a lifelong friendship. As I get older that seems to be much more important to me than in my early years of business.

After getting into the wine business nine years ago I quickly discovered one of the best relationship builders was the combination of food and wine. In my opinion it is unparalleled. Not many people don’t care for wine or don’t like discussing it.

The design of LEX 530 changed several times, but Carl and Emilie Tiedemann focused on building a lovely private dining area and a well-appointed kitchen.

In the early days of my wine business I warehoused my entire inventory in one building and our corporate office in another building. In 2011 we decided to combine our operations into our current location. During the planning and design process of our space I wanted to incorporate some space to take advantage of my friends’ and clients’ fondness of food and wine. We constructed a wine tasting room where we could showcase our wines with our customers. We also had a large community conference room and break room in the building. It wasn’t long after we moved in that I decided to use the conference area for wine dinners and tastings for larger groups of customers and friends. All of this effort was intended to use food and wine, in a nice space, to create or further relationships with current or future customers. It worked quite well. Most of the attendees are now my friends and continue to attend our wine events. I discovered these events were and are good for my business and they are really enjoyable.

From the beginning I began to hold different types of wine events and dinners. The events were so successful that we were contacted by other companies to put on similar dinners and wine tastings for them. The one thing they all had in common was the combination of good food and wine used to build relationships and long-term friendships.

When Mrs. Tiedemann and I began designing our LEX 530 Event Center, we wanted to incorporate these same relationship-building venues into the design. The design changed several times, but we focused on building a lovely private dining area and a well-appointed kitchen.

Private wine dinners are a great way to really connect with clients and friends.

Now that LEX 530 is open and holding events, we have been very fortunate to have Chef Chad Coryn join our team. His culinary touch adds that extra layer of making every event even more special. I continue to hold wine dinners for my own companies as well as others. We are currently working on wine dinners for Old National Bank, Final Phase Electric and Business Furnishings.

I am convinced that business relationships can turn into good friendships. I also know that whether at work or outside of work, days are much better if you are interacting with positive people who you enjoy spending time with.

If you would be interested in me helping you with a private wine dinner contact me to discuss at 574-296-1311.

In addition to private wine dinners you may want to consider attending one of our monthly LEX 530 Wine and Dinner Club events. We strive to provide good food and wine pairings for your enjoyment. Learn more about the Club by visiting our LEX 530 website here.

June Wine Dinner            
Uptown Kitchen in Granger, Ind., will host a wine dinner tomorrow night (Friday, June 21, 2019). The theme is Chicago Style Steakhouse and the cost is $105 per person. The dinner will feature Carl’s Glenwood Cellars and Tiedemann wines. Click here to see the food and wine pairings. Call 574-968-3030 to reserve your spot at this dinner.

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Until next week,
Cheers

Calendar of Events

• June 21 – Lambrusco Day
• August 1 – International Albariño Day
• August 4 – National White Wine Day
• August 18 – International Pinot Noir Day
• August 29 – International Cabernet Day
• September 20 – International Grenache Day
• November 7 – International Merlot Day
• November 14 – International Tempranillo Day
• November 20 – International Zinfandel Day
• December 4 – Cabernet Franc Day
• December 20 – National Sangria Day
• December 31 – National Champagne Day