Leanna Lindsay

In a busy 98% DTC winery, I manage all aspects of hospitality, including the tasting room, the 14,000-square-foot estate house, and all events, including the wine club events. We have at least one party per month, averaging 175 guests, with many months offering multiple, more intimate events.

My duties include managing daily operations of winery hospitality events and guest experiences, supervising staff training and development for customer service excellence, overseeing inventory management and procurement of hospitality supplies, handling all reservations and estate house interactions, as well as scheduling all maintenance housekeeping, daily inspections of the property to ensure upkeep and aesthetic appeal, implementing control measures for food and beverage service standards, fostering relationships with local vendors and community organizations for partnerships, resolving guest inquiries and concerns to ensure a positive experience at the winery, training new employees on proper hospitality protocols according to company guidelines, organizing and managing staff schedules, ensuring adequate coverage for all shifts, developing and implementing hospitality policies to ensure guest satisfaction, promoting a positive work environment by effectively communicating with staff members and resolving conflicts in a timely manner, conducting regular meetings with the management team to discuss operational issues, reviewing goals, and developing strategies for improvement, coordinating with vendors to arrange catering services for special events held at the winery, assisting guests with inquiries about local attractions or other information related to their stay, and ensuring compliance with safety regulations and health codes by conducting routine inspections of facility areas, overseeing recruiting, interviews, and new employee hiring.

Direct day-to-day operations by spearheading implementation of short-term and long-term strategies to achieve business plan and profitability goals. Devised, implemented and managed promotions to enhance profits and drive customer engagement. Oversees day-to-day operations of all DTC activities. Management of DTC Operations team members including Customer Experience, inventory and technology. In an ongoing manner, ensure that all fulfillment activities operate seamlessly across multiple warehouses. Continuously identify areas for growth and innovations pertaining to ecommerce experience, all aspects of fulfillment and customer experience. Builds and maintains strong relationships with Brand Marketing, Digital Marketing and Operations, Tasting Room, and Winemaking Teams. Responsible for inventory control, compliance, permitting, safety agenda, SOP management, staff incentives and contests, procurement, and training (employee training programs and secret shopper program). Manage external vendor relations and ensure timely communication and payment. Works closely with Tasting Room & Hospitality teams to build, implement and maintain all processes and structure at Tasting Room. Participate in the Direct to Consumer Leadership Team - setting and delivering on the broader DTC strategy. Work to identify any technological & website issues and work with team to resolve. Demonstrate a thorough understanding of business and key drivers. Act as an ambassador and build collaborative and productive cross-functional relationships with BOD, Staff, Ecommerce Team, Digital Marketing and PR to ensure tone, look and feel, and content support brand standards and guidelines. Manages an operations team that supports all DTC channels with a focus on the Tasting Room channel. Continually mitigates risk by evaluating and monitoring the list of DTC-specific controls.

A am solely responsible for overseeing every aspect of the wine program from coordinating harvest to the guest experience in the Tasting Room.

Coordinated events from inception to execution, ensuring client satisfaction and adherence to budget.

• Managed logistics including vendor coordination, timelines, and budget assessments for various events.
• Designed contracts, secured venues, and collected fees for successful event planning.
• Developed and maintained spreadsheets tracking vendor, facility, and guest information.
• Directed florists, photographers, musicians, officiants, and ceremony participants throughout events.
• Oversaw catering services and audio-visual requirements to enhance event experience.
• Organized comprehensive event logistics encompassing scheduling, staffing, and client communication.

I engaged and educated guests about the winery, wines, and winemaking techniques in the tasting salon, poured wines, and curated memorable tasting experiences while promoting wine sales, provided exceptional customer service, and managed daily tasting room operations, confirmed appointments, and accurately processed sales transactions in POS systems, coordinated shipping logistics with UPS, FedEx, and GSO for timely deliveries, acted as a liaison between hospitality staff and management, attended all company meetings, developed standard operating procedures to enhance service quality and efficiency, and implemented hands-on training programs for new employees to maximize engagement. I attended many off-site events and VIP pourings, working independently.

• Developed and implemented strategies to enhance team performance, improve processes, and increase efficiency.
• Developed SOPs for service.
• Handled thousands of dollars' worth of cash and card transactions daily, with accuracy and efficiency.
• Collaborated with the Director of Hospitality to educate employees on the wine menu and procedural changes.
• Sourced new vendors and suppliers to boost product offerings, and increase profit margins.
• Assisted with staff development by implementing effective, hands-on training programs for new employees, maximizing performance and engagement from day one.
• Trained newly hired employees by explaining job responsibilities, and overseeing task prioritization.

Supervised 40+ employees in Food and Beverage Department, ensuring efficient operations.

• Optimized profits by controlling daily food, beverage, and labor costs.
• Conducted restaurant walk-throughs to assess service quality and timeliness.
• Collaborated with Executive Chef on food and beverage selections to enhance offerings.
• Negotiated vendor contracts while maintaining comprehensive records for tracking.
• Developed a skilled staff dedicated to professional service and policy adherence.
• Produced monthly sales reports to support strategic planning and operational decisions.
• Implemented training processes for new hires, coaching employees for performance improvement.