Marieshka Barton

Sonoma Wine MBA student, Marieshka Barton, was honored with the Baylor-NACRA Best Student Case Award for her case research paper "Tribute: The Marketing of a Biodynamic Luxury Wine". The case focused on cost and benefits of keeping the Benziger Family Winery's flagship wine, Tribute, in the wholesale market.

"Marieshka's knowledge, devotion, and passion for wine business provided this case study with the well-deserved NACRA award. Likewise, her ability to grow wine retail sales through event planning and promotion has shaped her successful career in the wine industry," Dr. Armand Gillinsky, Korbel Professor of Wine Business said.

"My goal was to apply my experience in Biodynamic farming to enhance my case research. The Sonoma Wine MBA program motivated and gave me the confidence to pursue this case research project. Specifically, Dr. Armand Gillinsky's expertise in case research and guidance helped elevate this case study every step of the way," Marieshka Barton, Professional Wine MBA student said. 

The NACRA Conference took place on October 6-8, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Marieshka's case was one of three finalists. Each finalist was asked to present the procedure used throughout the research, a summary of the case, teaching objectives and theories, and how the case relates to the topic of Free Enterprise.

Barton works closely with Dr. Armand Gillinsky, Founding Editor, as student editor of the Wine Business Journal. The online journal provides practical tools and decision-making methods for industry and academics. Barton is also currently enrolled in the Certificate for Direct-to-Consumer Wine Sales offered by the Wine Business Institute.