Event & Business Development Manager

Crimson Wine Group; Napa, Northern (CA, KY); Hybrid; USD 81,000 - 99,000; Full time

Job summary

Crimson Wine Group is seeking an Event & Business Development Manager to drive revenue through strategic sales initiatives and high-quality events. The role leads the Events Team, cultivates relationships with DMCs, associations, and private clients, and oversees budgeting, menus, and guest experiences.

You will advance revenue objectives while upholding luxury hospitality standards across estate events, while negotiating contracts and ensuring operational excellence.

Qualifications

• Five+ years of experience in event sales, business development, hospitality, or related field.
• Proven ability to build and manage a sales pipeline and close high-value events.
• Strong contract negotiation, budgeting, and vendor management skills.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute an event sales strategy to meet revenue and profitability goals.
• Build relationships with DMCs, associations, tour operators, and corporate planners.
• Lead, coach, and develop the Events Team to achieve targets.
• Oversee event planning from inquiry to post-event follow-up and billing.
• Ensure luxury service standards and compliance with company policies.
• Prepare budgets, forecasts, and performance reports with Finance.

Skills

Communication

Presentation

Organizational skills

Interpersonal skills

Event planning

Contract negotiation

Budgeting

Vendor management

CRM

Microsoft Office

Education

RBS and Food Safety Manager Certificate

Tools

CRM

POS

Reservation systems

Event management software

Microsoft Office

Job description

About Crimson Wine Group

At Crimson Wine Group, we are the guardians of 1,000 acres of pristine vineyards, iconic estates, forests, and wildlife habitats along the West Coast. Our enviable portfolio of brands includes Pine Ridge Vineyards (Napa, Calif.), Seghesio Family Vineyards (Healdsburg, Calif.), Archery Summit (Dayton, Ore.), Chamisal Vineyards (San Luis Obispo, Calif.), Double Canyon (West Richland, Wash.), Seven Hills Winery (Walla Walla, Wash.) and Raeburn Winery (Sonoma, Calif.).

We are committed to creating a workplace and culture that celebrates diversity, equity and inclusion as part of what makes us a little different and a lot better. Our success is informed by the wide range of experiences and perspectives that our team brings to each of our wines – from vine to bottle and beyond. We encourage all applicants with a vision for creating a more equitable, inclusive and diverse wine industry to apply to join our team. For more information, please visit www.crimsonwinegroup.com .

Position Summary

The Event & Business Development Manager is responsible for driving event revenue through strategic sales initiatives, business development, relationship management, and consistent execution of high-quality events. This position develops and maintains a qualified sales pipeline through DMCs , winery associations, tour operators, corporate planners, concierge networks, key accounts, private clients, and referral partners, ensuring that event activity supports estate utilization, wine sales, profitability, and brand visibility .

This role provides leadership to the Events Team, oversees internal and external event inquiries, negotiates contracts, supports the development of menus and guest experiences, manages budgets, and ensures adherence to service and operational standards. Serving as a representative of the estate and Crimson Wine Group, the Event & Business Development Manager is expected to advance revenue objectives while maintaining operational excellence and luxury hospitality standards.

Values in Practice

We Serve We Focus on Excellence We Deliver on Commitments

Hospitality, Brand & Team Commitment

Guided by our \"We\'ve Been Expecting You\" philosophy, we create meaningful experiences through thoughtful service, authentic connection, collaborative teamwork, and pride in representing our winery and brands.

Commitment to Excellence & Growth

We pursue excellence through continuous learning, adaptability, personal accountability, and a commitment to improving ourselves, our teams, and the guest experience.

Community & Stewardship

We honor our responsibility to the estate, our communities, and the environment through respectful actions, responsible hospitality, and stewardship of our winery's legacy.

The following reflects management’s definition of essential functions for this job but does not restrict the tasks that may be assigned. Management may assign or reassign duties and responsibilities to this job at any time due to reasonable accommodations or other reasons.

Business Development & Event Sales

• Develop and execute an event business development strategy to achieve annual revenue, wine sales, profitability, and estate utilization goals.


• Prospect, solicit, and secure new business across corporate events, incentive travel, executive retreats, private celebrations, luxury hospitality experiences, virtual tastings, and incremental sales programs.


• Build and maintain relationships with DMCs, winery associations, tour operators, hotel concierge teams, corporate planners, event agencies, community partners, and referral sources.


• Manage a qualified sales pipeline, including lead generation, prospecting activity, referral productivity, conversion metrics, and forecast reporting.


• Conduct site visits, client presentations, sales meetings, follow-up outreach, trade shows, networking events, and community or industry functions to generate and close qualified leads.


• Collaborate with key stakeholders to develop promotional materials, sales tools, event concepts, menus, and campaigns that support revenue growth.


• Track market trends, competitive activity, customer demand, and partner performance to identify new sales opportunities and business expansion strategies.


• Hire, train, schedule, coach, supervise, and develop the Events Team to achieve sales, service, financial, and operational objectives.


• Establish performance expectations, accountability measures, training priorities, and development plans for event staff.


• Conduct performance reviews, coaching conversations, and progressive discipline as needed; administer and approve payroll and incentives in a timely and compliant manner.


• Create staffing plans and schedules that support events, floor coverage, manager-on-duty needs, and labor cost optimization.


• Foster a culture of hospitality, professionalism, accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement.


• Uphold all Crimson Wine Group policies and procedures.

Event Planning & Execution

• Oversee event planning from inquiry through contract, planning, execution, billing, post-event follow-up, and debrief.


• Coordinate and collaborate with various departments, including wholesale, facilities, winemaking, hospitality, and executive teams.


• Develop event menus, experience offerings, timelines, staffing plans, and execution standards aligned with brand positioning and financial goals.


• Serve as escalation point for complex client needs, VIP events, service recovery, and event-related challenges.


• Ensure events meet service standards, contractual guidelines, timelines, safety requirements, compliance expectations, and budgets.


• Manage vendor, supplier, entertainment, and service partner relationships to ensure best value, reliability, and brand alignment.


• Maintain organized event files, contracts, vendor records, billing documentation, and recommendations for future event success.

Luxury Hospitality Standards & Training

• Develop and maintain luxury service manuals, event playbooks, hospitality training programs, and Standard Operating Procedures that support elevated service delivery and operational consistency.


• Ensure guest-facing event experiences reflect the winery’s luxury positioning, service ethic, and “We’ve Been Expecting You” hospitality philosophy.


• Coach teams on service etiquette, storytelling, personalization, sales initiatives, and guest engagement standards.


• Identify opportunities to enhance guest and client experience through innovation, personalization, operational readiness, and service excellence.


• Manage event revenue, expenses, profitability, and P&L performance against financial targets and budget goals.


• Prepare monthly budget, forecast, sales, inventory, and business performance reports in partnership with the Estate Manager and Finance.


• Conduct post-event analysis to identify profitability, operational improvements, client retention strategies, and future revenue opportunities.


• Ensure timely and accurate processing of contracts, deposits, invoicing, billing, and accounting reports according to company guidelines.


• Track and forecast event supplies, equipment, facility needs, and CAPEX items within approved budgets and purchasing processes.

Success Measures

• Event revenue growth, annual sales goal achievement, and profitable business mix


• Qualified lead generation, pipeline health, booking pace, and conversion rate


• Referral partner, DMC, corporate, private, and tour-related revenue production


• Event profitability, budget management, wine sales, and post-event client engagement


• Luxury guest experience, team service consistency, operational readiness, and compliance with company standards


• Effective communication and coordination among various departments

Qualifications

• Minimum of five years of experience in event sales, business development, hospitality, luxury service, winery operations, or a related field.


• Demonstrated success developing sales pipelines, securing new business, managing client relationships, and achieving revenue goals.


• Prior experience leading, coaching, scheduling, and developing event, hospitality, or sales teams.


• Strong knowledge of event planning, contract negotiation, budgeting, vendor management, and service execution.


• Excellent communication, presentation, organizational, and interpersonal skills, with the ability to represent the estate professionally with clients, partners, and internal stakeholders.


• Ability to manage multiple priorities, deadlines, and events while maintaining attention to detail and sound judgment.


• Proficiency with Microsoft Office and reservation, CRM, POS, event management, or related hospitality systems.


• RBS and Food Safety Manager Certificate, within 30 days of employment


• Must have valid California Driver’s License


• 21 and over


• Ability to lift and carry up to 50 pounds as needed.


• Ability to stand and walk for extended periods during events, site visits, and daily operations.


• Ability to work on multiple surfaces, including indoor and outdoor areas, uneven terrain, stairs, patios, vineyard-adjacent spaces, and event venues.


• Ability to bend, reach, carry, set up, and move event-related materials, equipment, and supplies in support of event execution.

The projected (base) pay for this position is $90,000 per year in addition to annual bonus. This base is the projected compensation for this position, however the actual compensation offered may vary based on job-related factors such as (but not limited to) candidate qualifications, related experience and education, candidate work location and market data. Crimson Wine Group reserves the right to modify the pay range/rate at any time in the future.