Join a team of people who love great wine

Back Room Wines (BRW) takes great care to curate our collection of wines from all over the world, at every price. We seek small producers whose wines truly represent the grape and place in which they are grown. We believe in exceptional service and hospitality. Our job isn’t to sell our guests the most expensive wine in the shop; it’s to listen, learn, and earn their trust. Sound cool to you? Check out our open position below.

Wine Specialist – Full-time – Napa, CA

Back Room Wines is expanding its retail team! We’re looking for an energetic, professional and highly motivated individual to join our retail wine specialist team. This is a full-time position, working out our Downtown Napa retail store. No cold calling. No telecommuting. Great opportunity to learn and grow through extensive hands-on education (seminars, tastings and meetings with some of the world’s top wine estates). Our environment tends to be fast-paced, constantly evolving and inclusive. Individuals who excel at BRW thrive in an ever-changing workplace.

Strong candidates will have an understanding of the fine wine market (wines/regions/varietals/prices) and ability to provide a high level of detailed service to a demanding customer base. This includes a well-rounded knowledge of fine wines, customer relationship building, technology and sales writing. The most successful person in this role will be very organized, able to multitask, self-motivated and a strong written communicator.


What You’ll Be Doing:

•  Work with other team members to ensure that all customers receive exceptional service throughout their shopping experience
•  Provide wine recommendations (in person, on the phone, and via email) and help customers choose the best wine for their personal taste, gift, or event
•  Make customers feel welcome and at home in our store
•  Respond to inquiries from customers from phone calls or to emails
•  Assist with buying and vendor management of wines and spirits
•  Floor maintenance: main floor, coolers, and shelf maintenance
•  Receive inventory and place in corresponding region on the floor in an organized fashion
•  Pick and pack orders for shipping and/or pickup
•  Take pride in the accuracy of your work
•  Assist with wine bar/tastings, events; setup/breakdown & service


Ideal Candidate:

•  Desire to learn about wine, work hard, and develop with our growing company
•  Good organizational skills and an eye for detail (the little things do matter)
•  Happy to balance computer, physical work, and interacting with guests
•  Great at communicating clearly and effectively (in person, on the phone, and via email) with both customers and other team members
•  Dedicated to making people happy/exceeds customer expectations with a great attitude while being a fantastic and fun team player
•  Self-starter with energy to spare
•  Be organized, resourceful and dedicated to excellence on all aspects of work; capable of planning their own time efficiently and effectively.

Requirements:

•  Must be 21 years old to apply
•  Ability to easily lift and move 50lbs
•  3+ years of recent wine industry related experience (wine retail/wholesale, restaurant or other) is required
•  WSET, CSW, CSM preferred but not required
•  Strong knowledge of fine wine market (especially Bordeaux, Burgundy, Napa, Tuscany, Rhone, Barolo/Piedmont), and even some individual wine label familiarity – top wines per region and current market pricing
•  Ability to write tasting notes, speak in depth to specific wine products/regions/varietals
•  Proficiency in MS Office and an ability quickly learn new technology/software
•  Be able to type 35-40 words per minute
•  Ability to resolve issues in an efficient and productive manner
•  Prompt and clear intercompany communication to ensure everyone involved is aware of issues and what steps are taken to resolve them
•  A can do, positive attitude coupled with the ability to treat issues as part of the bigger picture
•  On-hands social media and/or marketing experience (or a strong desire to learn) a plus


Benefits:
Hourly wage starting at $27 (or greater depending on wine/spirits retail experience), plus tips (from tasting bar services), accrued PTO (after 3 months), sick leave, trade tastings and discounts, plenty of opportunities to learn about and taste wine & spirits from throughout the world, and a deep employee discount. An opportunity to earn sales commissions based on our existing database will also be provided (no cold calling required).

To Apply:
We are screening potential interviewees via EMAIL ONLY (no calls or drop-ins) and will be scheduling interviews quickly with a hope to hire immediately. Please email your resume and a cover letter which explains why you are the perfect person for the job to backroomwines@gmail.com