- 2 months ago
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00Thank you
00:30happy Friday everyone I am Robin McBride of McBride sisters collection wines and I'm here
00:41with my beautiful sister Andrea McBride and today we're going to be doing a little bit
00:46of a virtual wine tasting with our special guest Dwayne Wade and Gabrielle Union and
00:50we'll drink some wines from the McBride sisters collection as well as Wade cellars while we
00:55discuss the wine business and some of the adjustments that we've made due to the current
01:00climate as we all know we're operating in a brave new world that will likely change the way that we
01:06do business forever so we thought we'd talk about how and why we all became vintners but also the
01:11things that we're doing to thrive during these uncertain times so let us welcome our special
01:17guests Dwayne Wade and Gabrielle Union who have both had a lot of experience with entrepreneurial
01:23ventures Gabrielle Union across a number of industries including entertainment and fashion
01:28and Dwayne Wade who also has a number of business ventures but of course selfishly we're most
01:34interested in Wade cellars wines welcome guys how's it going okay we good over here how are you guys
01:44so what we good good so good like Robin like Robin said selfishly we're interested in the wine so can
01:52you hold up a bottle what are we gonna can we give people a little bit of a preview what are we
01:56gonna be sipping on in a little bit it's a little early so we're gonna sip on a little white wine okay
02:03they know that I'm very excited about our first white wine Chenin Blanc this is something that was
02:14introduced to me and my wife over this last year so we're new to it over this last year but we love it
02:20so very excited about this cool quote well we're excited to hear about it so let's start with wine
02:28first and then we'll get into the discussion about where we're at with the business so if you could
02:34share with us what does wine mean to you in your lives I mean it's we encompass a lot of our passions
02:47are sort of swirling around wine the love of travel the love of food the love of conversation yeah
02:57connecting connecting with others everything that we love to do it seems like wine is that
03:03one common denominator that's always there for us yeah it's been great and then so how did you take
03:11that love of wine that seems like it touch touches so many facets of your life and then decide to
03:19transition into becoming vintners and and getting into the wine business it actually kind of happened
03:28it just happens when I first got with my wife she was the drinker in the family and I wasn't a lot of
03:36judgment we had a lot of judgment on but you know as I as I grew as we traveled the world as we was in
03:45different rooms with different individuals uh it started to become the norm uh wine started to become
03:51a part of just our daily life and I started taking a liking to it and you know what because of that we
03:58end up traveling to Napa Valley we end up you know meeting so many people in the wine industry it just
04:03kind of started from just conversations and I really followed her lead um even our first meeting with the
04:08Paul Meyer family I thought they was going to sign her up and not even me because she knew
04:13way about it um and at that time we actually when I decided to do my partnership with Paul Meyer she
04:21actually did a partnership at the same time um with a wine called vanilla pudding was a Chardonnay
04:27and we both was kind of entering this wine space and it was cool for our family and then eventually
04:33we decided to just make it you know the way the way family wine and really support this but it really
04:38just started from the places we went the people we met um and my wife and my wife drinking a lot of
04:44wine yeah and being open to different people and conversations you know really wanting to sort of
04:51push past our comfort level you know we we tend to kind of stick to you know the people and the places
04:58that were comfortable and you know with um you know having the same kind of conversations over and over
05:03again and the more we started to push ourselves socially um we ended up meeting all kinds of
05:08people from all over the world with interests and it broadened our horizons and kind of opened up the
05:12wine world to us so it sounds like that wine is really really about community building and and bringing
05:21people together and so I know as we've been watching your live on instagram you know we're we know
05:28that's what you all are really passionate about you know is building community bringing people
05:32together and so during these really challenging times uh during covid um you know and this applies
05:39obviously to a lot of people a lot of black owned businesses uh we are not able to get out and
05:44physically touch and meet people uh how are you guys handling this challenge um and what are are there
05:51a few opportunities that you can share uh with us and with the audience as to how you're trying to
05:57work in this new normal uh and so still run your business yeah I mean I believe we're we're just
06:05like everyone else right it's it's a day-to-day process and we're figuring it out you know the
06:11thing that we we we have is we have we both have individually we both have very good teams and smarter
06:17people smarter people on my team maybe not smarter than my wife on her team but smarter people that you
06:23know are able we are able to sit down with and say hey guys listen these are some of the things that
06:27we would love to accomplish as a family especially when it comes to uh what's going on in the world
06:34and so we've been able to do that from a foundation standpoint and then we're able to sit down with
06:38our team and say hey from a business standpoint these are the things we would like to accomplish
06:41what's the best the best ways to do that so for me um I was like hey I've always wanted to kind of have
06:48this interview series um and I never had the time to do it so I was like hey what time what better time
06:53than now and I'm passionate about wine it's something that we obviously enjoy so we came up with a concept
07:00called the wine down and from that off of just the wine down um I have zoom uh calls with a lot of uh
07:08people in the wine industry a lot of songs we get on that we get on zoom we talk a lot um you know we've
07:14been doing special promotions with d-wade sellers trying to keep uh uh our engagement you know in
07:20the wine industry obviously right now wine is and where can people where can people those specials that
07:27you guys have where can people find these d-wade sellers where can people take advantage of those
07:32specials that you guys have going on yeah right now the the best way I mean obviously because the
07:39safest way because we all have to stay home uh is is online um our website uh www.dwadesellers.com
07:48that's the name of our wine company d-wade sellers um and that's that's where a lot of people have been
07:54going to purchase the wine to experience um you know kind of the I want to say before this a lot of
08:01people didn't even know I had a wine um so only a few and I had just started to get out there started
08:06to touch people started to go places and and pour wine and and now uh my wine down on on the IG live
08:13or the conversations I'm having with others offline people are starting to get an opportunity to know
08:18about the wine so they're going on my website uh we have done cool promotions we just finished one
08:23right now we did two bottles of my um of our red blend two bottles of rosé and free shipping for
08:29a hundred dollars so we're trying to make sure that we engage our wine community people get
08:34opportunity to be um invested and interested in what we're doing and hopefully enjoy you know the
08:39juice in the bottle definitely figure out to kind of take a step back and look at look at all of your
08:47businesses and see um where you can improve um and and sometimes you know when you're in the rat race
08:53you just keep going going going and there's very little time for reflection and personal
08:57accountability as business people and as global citizens uh can you know are you selling something
09:04that is only for a select few are you selling something that isn't available to everyone um are
09:10you being insensitive are you being tone deaf um you know are there are there better ways of doing
09:15business and then also you know it was something like with wine you know watching a movie like uncorked on
09:21on netflix got us inspired yeah more people who um are in the wine industry and in every level of the
09:29wine industry um how can we create more and make um things that a lot of people seem to think are uh for
09:36certain folks for everybody um and kind of rethink our business plan in that way and and so that's
09:43oh oh sorry i was just gonna say that's actually one of the questions that i have for you
09:48particularly gabriel because you have so many business ventures going on at the same time and
09:54like with the shelter in place how do you decide like what are you focusing on and then like you
10:01know what changes have you made for those things that you can focus on because there's only so many
10:05things we can do while everybody's kind of you know stuck at home things safe like you know what has
10:10become your main focus and how has it shifted during this time um there's a lot of people who have a lot
10:17of different ideas about how to build a business right now and how to grow a business right and
10:23sell hard sell you know because people are just trapped and i was like yeah due to a global pandemic
10:29how about we lead with um you know giving back so that's really great our focus is only is our
10:36work with our foundation and identifying those areas that are falling through the cracks um in a
10:41philanthropic way um and then from there you know thinking about our employees and all of the people
10:48at all the different stages um that that allow us to all you know have all these different businesses
10:53who are suffering terribly and uh that that's been the biggest uh challenge you know um you wanna you
11:04want to be able to present all of the things that you are selling um but you have to be cognizant of
11:11the fact that people people are suffering don't have enough money to eat um for housing um how do you
11:17balance that with with selling and and for us it's to um lead with giving back um and you know as as
11:25employees and as um leaders of our family uh it all starts with um what are you doing for others versus
11:32what can they do for you and when it's all said and done hopefully you know people will remember
11:37your heart uh oh um so can you so can you tell us maybe like some uh um what are some of those
11:46foundations that are or yours or ones that you're working with during this time well uh we have the
11:52the wade family foundation and uh our initial efforts were to identify uh five different health
11:59care providers in cities that that that mean a lot to us um omaha nebraska milwaukee wisconsin chicago
12:06illinois miami florida and los angeles california and identify some of those health care providers for
12:11the lgbtq plus communities um and make sure they have needed funds for uh our most marginalized uh of us
12:19and really start there and then we just you know start answering dms um you know friends who are
12:25delivering um meals to you know folks who can't you know get out to the grocery stores hit them off in
12:32in their gofundmes and sometimes it's you know these larger organizations that are helping to feed
12:37millions and some are smaller organizations that are are more grassroots and local um but we don't
12:43generally publicize um everything that we're doing um we try to just shoot that um where it's most
12:50needed um and we're open to uh hearing from uh all different kinds of organizations big and small and
12:57and uh we just we just do it and instead of uh talking about doing it we're just writing the check
13:04and shutting up well cheers to that yeah yeah making sure that you know we we're owners of uh 800 degrees
13:14um you know with our um kitchen restaurants and we also are making sure to provide food to hospitals
13:21for the health care um as well so you know we we are real big on um you know making sure that small
13:28businesses get to the love and attention um that is needed i mean we are part of that small business
13:34community um so what we can do we're trying to do from the standpoint of making sure others can be fed
13:39at this time and um so you know it's just many different things that we we're trying to be a
13:44part of we're not just trying to focus on one thing because there's many needs and i'll be trying to
13:48focus on things that are near dear you know kind of who we others can benefit from yeah but mostly
13:56really focus on the most marginalized uh communities um here abroad uh who are are the most impacted by the
14:03uh by the virus and who are also tend to be the most invisible um victim we're trying to just
14:10efforts um in those in those uh directions you guys are an inspiration uh it's amazing um and i think
14:18you know uh one of the things that as a community um we can all do is just figure out um you know what
14:26that is what that one thing is that you can do today to help somebody out and you you said it like
14:33figuring out you know how you can help um and then just trying to to do the best that you can
14:40um a message you know um because i we have very we're both part of very large families and not
14:47everybody has the same means so sometimes it's just a retweet of a small business or a local
14:53business sometimes it's just um amplifying um reasonable and appropriate uh healthcare measures
15:00you you just do where you can and you get in where you fit in um but we can't none of us can afford to
15:05sit this sit this one out for sure so we do want to uh talk about your wine a little bit and and one
15:13of the things that has been noted uh during this time of um of shelter in place is obviously the
15:22increased consumption of wine that has been going on uh while uh people have been at home and so we do
15:29want to try and uh put a spotlight on the entire black vittner community um there are a lot of black
15:36vittners out there um and and you all are are definitely a part of that community so tell us a
15:43little bit about uh this new chin and blanc uh that you guys are on the cusp of of bringing to the market
15:50and launching yeah i mean in the beginning when we decided to get into the wine industry you know
15:58one thing we knew is that in our community and you know african-american community especially
16:06the perception of wine right the perception of the world that wine lives in is not a community for us
16:12so we want is that perception um and you know not only us you guys and so many others you know are part
16:19of that um of changing it so that's been a big focus focal point of you know of kind of the way i
16:25want the d weight sellers brand to to be perceived it's not i don't want it to be from a standpoint that
16:33you have to know everything about wine to enjoy wine that's why when i talk about wine i talk about the
16:38wines that uh we have you know in the in the d-way sellers lineup it all has grown with you know my
16:45palate and really just understanding you know go at your own pace your own speed you know when guys
16:51are talking about these expensive wines and these prices that you know these prices that can get
16:56outrageous uh we try to focus on you know where you are and i think that's one thing that we try to do
17:03throughout the entire time so you know as i mentioned you know we we recently came out with
17:08our first white wine which is a chen and blanc and i think the reason for sitting down with the team
17:14was just talking about how napa is only known for what chardonnay and you know sauvignon blanc
17:22but we wanted to also show that napa can make some great wine some great white wine in that
17:27and in block as you know um andrea as we talked about this is one of the best um you know these
17:32are one of the best grapes and wines out there so to be able to jump into the chen and blanc world to
17:36be able to jump into the white wine world for us coming out of napa something that's very important for
17:41us as a brand and something that i'm super and our team is super excited about so if we were uh to
17:48crack open a bottle of of d-way sellers chen and blanc and poured into our glass and give it a little
17:55swirl uh what would we what would we smell what would we taste what would the experience be like
18:01uh let me take you on a journey yes so i feel that the d wade wine lineup really kind of explains who
18:18my wife is and let me tell you why okay right i feel that when you look at the bottles that wine come in
18:27right our bottles are definitely unassuming and sleek right it's sleek it's sexy um keep going
18:44my wife is listen let me let me finish i'm thinking of this on the fly so i i feel like you
18:50know i think the one thing about our wines and you know i kind of talked about this on the last live
18:55that i had with common on a wind down um is not wanting wine too sweet and not wanting wine too
19:02bitter right that's the one thing that when i sat down i was like oh wait i'm not too spitter
19:09my wife is a good combination be careful now be here what i'll do anyway
19:15my wife is a good combination of both so when i tell you that things that come to you as a part of
19:19your experience my wine is a part of my experience in my relationship it's um it's very like i said
19:28it's unassuming but also at the same time it's powerful you know from the standpoint of the taste
19:33and the things that you taste once you once you sip this wine so you know i think it i think it says
19:38gabrielle union yes yes and can we can we share and speaking of gabrielle union we have something that
19:47definitely uh personifies gabrielle union that we're that we're sipping on which is uh i don't
19:53know if you can see that yeah that's the red blend right yes that is our mcbride sisters
20:04red blend so um so sissy you want that you want to uh talk through if people were to crack open a
20:12a bottle of mcbride sister black girl magic what would they would be smelling
20:19i don't have a wife to compare it to but hold on let's see well i would say this is definitely this
20:25isn't this is a medium bodied wine but it's definitely round and very fruity and fruit forward
20:33and kind of like smooth and captivating and like sexy i would say if a wine can be sexy
20:44luscious luscious um i mean i don't know like based on that description who would you say this wine is
20:52everybody what would you say
20:53it reminds me of every powerful black woman that yes you know that we come across you know what i
21:08mean like we have four uh four adults uh quarantining in our house three of them are black women and it's
21:15it's literally everyone in your family the your favorite actors and musicians and athletes and and
21:22uh those those those home girls that that uh give you that that smile when you needed it uh you know
21:28when you're trying to race through the grocery store we named this correctly then so you're saying we
21:33nailed it so black magic is definitely the name that this wine should have so with that we flew through
21:41that i will say last saturday it went fast we got more for you we're not we're not my friends we got you
21:48so with that we have to we have to wrap it up and so but before we go we want to say thank you so much
21:55for for joining us and thank you so much for sharing and please shout it again where people can get d
22:00wade sellers um where they can check out your foundations let everybody know yeah well first of
22:07all we want to thank you guys we want to we want to cheers you guys oh thank you what you guys have
22:14built on what you guys have built is inspiring for us as well and hopefully so many others out there
22:20uh we're big fans of you know not only uh the way y'all built it but obviously you know the way that
22:25y'all have continued to sustain your brand and uh and what y'all stand for standards of excellence yes
22:31yes i mean it's amazing story but some of the top winemakers in the business some of the highest
22:40rated wine that you will ever come across and that's just a source of pride and inspiration you
22:45know for everyone that's that's coming behind um thank you for setting that yeah so if you guys
22:51want to talk about the wade wines go to uh edd wade sellers www.dwadesellers.com and uh it's an easy way to
23:00go on there and purchase our wine we try to made it we try to make make it very simple for everyone
23:04to go on there and be able to experience our wines and uh we we're young we're growing we're just trying
23:09to get to where the mcbrides sisters are that's our goal let's do it together and for all of you
23:14out there please go to mcbridesisters.com to buy mcbridesisters collection black girl magic and we're
23:20launching our wine school next friday so if all of you want to learn about wine go to our newsletter go
23:26go to mcbridesisters.com sign up for our newsletter and join our wine school yes thank you cheers
23:35bye-bye cheers you guys
23:46you
24:05.
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