Sips and Reflections with Michaela Rodeno

Join us for a book signing and wine tasting with author and vintner Michaela Rodeno as she shares reflections from her pioneering career at the forefront of the wine industry in Napa Valley.

Tracing the arc of her career development from its unlikely beginnings in early 1970s Napa, when the wine industry was in its infancy, to being part of the two-person team that launched Domaine Chandon in the U.S., to her role as St. Supéry Winery’s first CEO, Rodeno has extensive wit and wisdom to share.

In addition to co-owning and running Oakville-based Villa Ragazzi, Rodeno is the author of From Bubbles to Boardrooms: Serendipitous Stories from Inside the Wine Business, an inside look at her experiences in the wine industry, including a compilation of lessons learned from an extensive career working with many of Napa Valley's best.

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Speaker Bio

Michaela Rodeno
Villa Raguzzi, Owner

Michaela Rodeno is an experienced corporate director and recently retired CEO with extensive experience in building startup premium consumer products companies. Her 40‐year career in the wine business spans the development of two prominent French-owned Napa Valley wineries, Domaine Chandon (1973‐1988) and St. Supéry (1988-2009), from inception to financial success. Among her career achievements was the creation of the first relationship marketing program in the premium wine industry, the Chandon Club, in 1983. In 1988, Rodeno brought her consumer focus to St. Supéry, where she again built a strong database of direct customers who ultimately accounted for 17% of sales volume and 50% of the company’s net income. As one of few female CEO’s in the U.S. wine industry, she was a natural choice when Silicon Valley Bank Financial Group sought a director to represent its fast-growing premium wine practice in 2001. Ms. Rodeno began serving as an Astia advisor in 2010. Astia is a global community of business experts committed to building women leaders and accelerating the funding and growth of high-potential, high-growth, women‐led startups. The Rodeno Family also grows, bottles and markets a small amount of Napa Valley Sangiovese under their Villa Ragazzi label, which Ms. Rodeno single handedly launched in 2011 after a decade‐long hiatus. Ms. Rodeno earned an M.A. (1970) and B.A. (1968) in french literature from the UC, Davis and an M.B.A. (1980) from the Haas School of Business, UC, Berkeley. In 2010 she was named to the Haas Hall Of Fame, and to the Women For WineSense Hall of Fame.