Despite Crumbling DEI Initiatives, These Wine Pros Aren’t Backing Down

Over the past few years, diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives have faced growing resistance, with many industries—including wine and spirits—rolling back progress made in the wake of 2020’s racial reckoning. 

Following President Donald Trump’s return to the White House, DEI took a major hit. He signed executive orders essentially terminating programs aimed at diversity and accessibility across the government in January and a mass elimination of DEI agendas in the private sector followed. Major corporations like Google, Walmart, Target, Amazon and McDonalds, among others, scaled back their programs or cut funding or altogether. 

As money dries up and these programs are quietly dismantled, wine professionals find themselves at a crossroads, forced to navigate an industry that has long struggled with representation. Despite the setbacks, some are boldly forging ahead.

“Inclusion is a choice for some people, but I refuse to change what we do,” says Alicia Towns Franken, executive director of Wine Unify, a group that provides educational funding, resources and mentorship for aspiring wine professionals. “We believe in diversity, we believe in equity, we believe in inclusion.” 

However, as support for these programs dwindles, the question remains: What happens to the progress that was just beginning to take root?

Anti-DEI Pushback and the Beverage Industry

The anti-DEI movement started taking shape over the last few years, with right-wing activists like former music video director Robby Starbuck and billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman lambasting companies for establishing DEI programming on social media. Diversity programs became even more at risk when the Supreme Court ended affirmative action in 2023.

In the beverage industry, companies like Brown-Forman Corporation and Molson Coors Beverage Company rolled back several DEI initiatives that year, including participation in the Human Rights Campaign’s LGBTQ+ workplace inclusion scoring system. Meanwhile, some brands started to backpedal pledges to provide funding to support organizations grounded in diversity. “Sponsors are no longer willing to sponsor,” says Towns Franken, noting that there’s an overall chilling effect happening.

To Christopher Renfro, co-founder of the Two Eighty Project, an organization that focuses on increasing accessibility and representation for Black and other marginalized communities in the wine industry, this pendulum swing isn’t surprising.

“For the beverage space specifically, I believe we’re starting to see the true colors of who people truly are,” Renfro says. 

Why DEI Initiatives Still Matter

The dismantling of DEI threatens to limit career opportunities, make education less accessible and reduce the variety of perspectives in the industry. However, the biggest potential impact diminishing diversity and inclusion programs is the loss of community within the industry, which can have consequences on the bottom line.

As the wine industry struggles to cope with slumping sales, it needs all the support it can get. Putting wine in a vacuum prevents interesting ideas from flourishing and capturing the attention of new drinkers. 

“When you have more community, you have more economic support for restaurants, wine shops, beer stores, beer gardens and bars,” says Alexandra Schrecengost, founder of Culture With Us, a consultancy that focuses on fostering inclusive workplace cultures through virtual and in-person food and wine tastings. “That is really the whole purpose of DEI, to drive community.”

Community is particularly important since the wine industry is failing to attract Gen Z drinkers, who are more racially and ethnically diverse than previous generations. Remaining silent or outwardly pulling back on DEI programming could be the nail in the coffin. 

“The younger generation drinks their values and if you step away from DEI programs, they’re not going to drink your wine,” says Towns Franken. 

A rise in sober-curious lifestyles and growing use of cannabis instead of wine is yet another industry pressure that DEI could help address, according to Schrecengost, who notes that If the wine industry continues to pour all its resources into catering to a specific older, less inclusive demographic, “they’re going to lose because no matter what, because the landscape is changing.”