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THE DAYS OF WINE AND ROAD SOLDIERS
By Chris Barnett
January 31, 2013 -- If Suzanne Groth has a choice between booking a $150-a-night room at the Sheraton LAX or a $500 room at the Four Seasons in Beverly Hills, she checks into the five-star hotel. But that is not because she wants to be pampered and maybe see a movie star.

Groth, vice president of sales and marketing for family-owned Groth Vineyards and Winery in Napa Valley, knows her dad is a tight-fisted accountant. But he's also a canny business guy who knows when and where to spend.

"This Four Seasons is a great little hotel, but I stay here for one reason--they pour our sauvignon blanc by the glass," explains Groth. "We have a strict company policy. We only patronize travel providers that carry our wines."

Since the three-decade-old winery is known for its fine cabernets, Chardonnays and sauvignon blancs, they are generally carried by higher-end restaurants and hotels near the top of the lodging range.

Groth, who grew up working the vineyards and prefers jeans, cowboy boots and a workshirt rather than the St. John suit she sports on the road, stays at the Trump International Hotel in Chicago (Groth reserve cabernet is on its wine list) and at the uber-hip Delano in Miami's South Beach.

"The Delano is not exactly my style," admits the 42-year-old Groth. "We spend our money there because they are a sauvignon blanc customer and the hotel is our target audience."

Groth Vineyards sells 70,000 cases annually in all 50 states, which keeps Suzanne on the road 130 days a year. You can't taste or sell wine over the phone or Skype, she contends. And since Groth reserve cabernet fetches $150 a bottle at retail, face time and tastings with a family member are critical to cementing relationships with distributors, sommeliers, hotel food-and-beverage directors and big-volume wine shops.

To carry out the family policy of "spending our money with our partners," Ms. Groth makes a lot of one-night stands in big cities, packing and unpacking, checking in and checking out of hotel rooms.

"In every market we visit, we identify our best partners and I'll usually go through the F&B director so he knows I'm staying with him. Sometimes they extend a discount, sometimes they don't, but we want them to know we're on their property to develop an even closer relationship.

"Every once in a while, it results in an upgrade but I never, ever tell my husband that I'm in a suite," she says with a laugh. "That's cruel and unusual punishment. Rule one for a traveling salesperson: Don't tell your spouse how great it is on the road when they are not there to enjoy."

The winery's "spend it with your partners" policy isn't so rigid with airlines, however.

"Airlines are not really our target market, but where we do excel is in United's Red Carpet Room in Dallas and with NetJets. I don't get a chance to fly in a NetJet, but our reserve cabernet does."

Groth always flies coach and, most of the time, it's on Southwest Airlines. "Southwest is our corporate jet although I'm really an equal-opportunity flyer. But if I want to treat myself, I'll fly Virgin America."

Plus, Groth notes, Virgin America is located in Terminal 2 at San Francisco, "which has a yoga center, nice artwork and my new favorite shop, Vino Volo, one of our top red partners." (In case you don't know it, Vino Volo is a well-regarded chain of wine bars with outlets at 14 U.S. airports. It also offers complementary food dishes and sells bottled wine.)

Groth thinks Virgin America's customer service is "superior," the best among U.S. carriers, although she's not thrilled with the airline's Web site. Groth used to fly United Airlines, mainly because of its large SFO hub, but no longer. "I'm always getting 'timed out' on United's Web site and, since the merger, just don't get me started."

Groth Vineyards is an egalitarian employer and stretches the one-size-fits-all mantra to flying. The patriarch and chief executive, Dennis Groth, would never allow any of the family members to fly first class and have employees go coach. And Suzanne Groth very vocally underscores the importance of all team members flying one class. "The only time I fly business class is when I upgrade with my own miles. We don't buy upgrades."

Her other travel strategies are not all that creative. She wants to be on the first flight out in the morning "because there are fewer crying babies and less delays." On a recent return flight from New York, for example, she ordered her wake-up call for 3:30 a.m. at the New York Palace (sauvignon blanc and cabernet) and was on her way to Kennedy Airport by 4 a.m.

On the road, she totes a laptop, an iPad and, of course, stacks of business cards.

"Hey," she explains, "I'm in sales and I travel. There is always an opportunity to give someone my card and invite them to the winery. I rarely meet a teetotaler out there. I guess they don't travel."

ABOUT CHRIS BARNETT Chris Barnett writes about business-travel tactics and strategies that save time and money and help minimize hassles. He is based in San Francisco and has written for a wide variety of major newspapers and national magazines.

THE FINE PRINT Joe Brancatelli makes this space available to Chris Barnett in the spirit of free speech and to help encourage editorial diversity and the wider discussion of important travel issues. All of the opinions and material in this column are the sole property of Barnett. This material may not be reproduced in any form without the express permission of Chris Barnett.

This column is Copyright © 2013 by Chris Barnett. JoeSentMe is Copyright © 2013 by Joe Brancatelli. All rights reserved.