Bottle Green to create new wine product

The partnership, to be launched on 1st February, aims to create a new wine product to hit retailers' shelves next year and, for the first time, includes a research project working specifically with the student population.

As part of the Managing Innovation and Creativity module running from February until May, Bottle Green will be working with over 40 module students to carry out research into the general student population's wine purchase and consumption habits. The students will learn how to carry out consumer research, manage the various elements of the research project and then present back their summary findings around Easter time.

In the second part of the module, the students will take part in a number of creative sessions, based on the research results, and will develop and present back their own new product development ideas. The top three ideas will be presented to Bottle Green's management team with the student judged to have the best idea being invited to an all expenses paid trip to this year's London International Wine Fair to see the best of the wine trade's innovation in action. This idea will then be put into Bottle Green's innovation process and worked up to take to market, hopefully with the involvement of the winning student.

Bottle Green's Marketing Director, Richard Hitchcock, said "We are really very excited about this project and believe it can deliver some genuine consumer insight and NPD ideas that we could potentially see on a retailer's shelf in the months ahead. Leeds Met have worked incredibly hard with us to make this happen and the students will learn about innovation and creativity in a real life situation."

Leeds Metropolitan is one of the largest universities in the country, with over 52,000 students and 3,500 staff. One of the University's major aims is to engage and challenge students of all ages and backgrounds by offering diverse learning opportunities. This project is certainly something which fits the criteria. Guy Lincoln, the module leader, said "This is exactly the sort of industry and education partnership that really enhances students' learning and gives them a true insight into the world of work. We are very hopeful that we will get some extremely interesting results as the students are certainly highly motivated!"

Source: Bottle Green

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