About Lloyd Benedict
CEO/Founder
Lloyd Benedict, Founder and CEO of AmericanWinery.com, is an entrepreneur and wine marketer with a passion for “buying local.” In 2005, he founded AmericanWinery.com in Walla Walla, WA, one of the country’s premier wine producing regions. His goal: Help wineries sell more wine for more profit. His motto: Support Your Local Winemaker (he’s got the tee-shirt to prove it).
Lloyd came to Walla Walla in 2002 to study Anthropology at Whitman College. During his four years of study, he became familiar with many of the highly respected wine producers in the region. As his passion for wine grew, so did a passion to help wineries reach more wine consumers through the powerful vehicle of the Internet. Having been well exposed to MySpace, Facebook and the Amazon “phenomenon”, Lloyd took into account the power of social networking and how this resource could help wineries reach new wine consumers online.
The result is the web-based Consumer Direct Marketplace, which boasts the largest inventory of American-made wines on the Internet. The company provides marketing support and services to over 1,400 wineries and enables direct-to-consumer sales of nearly 2,500 domestic wine selections. AmericanWinery.com is the most direct way for wineries to reach more wine consumers online, and provides wine enthusiasts unparalleled selection and service.
Lloyd has been profiled in Forbes magazine, traveled to India to speak on viral wine marketing, is a current board member of Wine 2.0, and has been a speaker and attendee at many domestic trade seminars. He’s a 25-year old wine marketing whiz kid who is tirelessly spearheading a movement to level the playing field and help any U.S. winery compete in the booming online market.