A key question many winery owners face is: how should we pay our temporary workers? Should these seasonal harvest workers be classified as W-2 employees or 1099 contractors? The answer can have significant implications for both labor law compliance and tax purposes. Let's dive into the primary considerations.

We sometimes get asked how to “write-off” a new vehicle.  First of all, don’t get sucked into thinking that buying a vehicle equals automatic dollar-for-dollar savings on your tax bill.  Nothing is that simple. But when you use a personal vehicle for business purposes, you do get to include a deduction on your taxes for the business cost.

If you have seen declines in your winery sales this year, you are not alone. At this time, we are seeing flat or decreasing revenue in many of the wineries we work with. If you are facing this situation, you have a couple different levers you can work to try and change the tide. Whether you will have the power to pull on any of these levers is greatly influenced by whether you have reserves of cash on hand. That's why we recommend that wineries always keep a solid buffer of core capital on hand. If you do have cash reserves, you have many more option for how to get your winery profitable again.

How often do you look at your financial statements? We recommend checking in with your accountant at least every quarter to have them walk you through your financial statements. This is especially important for seasonal businesses like wineries. When your cash inflows fluctuate from month-to-month (hello, seasonal wine club shipments) and your cash outflows are also fluctuating from month-to-month (hello, giant grape bills), it can be tough to figure out if you are actually on track to make a profit--or if you will have any cash left in the bank before the next wine club shipment.

For many winery owners nearing retirement, the idea of passing the business down to their children is a compelling succession plan—it keeps the winery in the family. However, this is not a decision to be made lightly. Here are some key factors to consider as you face this significant transition. Get ready for some frank, valuable conversations!

Yep, the labor market is tight. Finding good employees is tough. And once you find them, you want to do everything you can to keep them. Competitive pay and a strong company culture are key factors in employee retention, but eventually you will also want to look at the benefit package that you are offering to employees. Benefits can be a key factor in keeping an employee with you for the long term.

Let’s run through some of the options out there for building a compelling benefit package for your team.