Wine Unify Announces Total Wine & More as Official Retailer and Supporter 

June 16 2024

Total Wine & More becomes a Supporter of Wine Unify, offering sponsorship for every level of its Welcome and Elevate Awards over the next three years.

(Napa, CA) June 11, 2024 – Wine Unify is thrilled to announce that Total Wine & More, the nation’s largest independent retailer of fine wine, beer, and spirits, joins their incredible group of supporters. In addition to Jackson Family Wines, Napa Valley Vintners, JCB Collection, Coravin, Gabriel-Glas, Napa Valley Wine Academy and many other generous supporters, Total Wine & More adds to a group of wine businesses dedicated to championing diversity and making meaningful change in the industry.

Wine Unify was founded by DLynn Proctor alongside two Masters of Wine, Mary Margaret McCamic and Martin Reyes. The organization is led by Alicia Towns Franken, who became the Executive Director in 2022. To date, Wine Unify has given 182 awards to Black, Indigenous, People of Color pursuing a passion for or career in wine.

Wine Unify’s awards offer fully funded, globally recognized credentials through the Wine & Spirit Education Trust, glassware from Gabriel-Glas, as well as education resources and tools from Coravin and JancisRobinson.com. In addition, awards from Wine Unify include mentorship from the organization’s robust leadership team, including Tonya Pitts (recently named Sommelier of the Year by Wine Enthusiast in 2022), Annette Alvarez-Peters, André Mack, Gary Obligacion, Anna Christina Cabrales, Brenae Royal, Kate Green, Artie Johnson, Priyanka French among many other talented professionals who volunteer their time to pave way for the next generation.

“To have Total Wine & More join us as a supporter in our mission is absolutely amazing,” says Alicia Towns Franken, Wine Unify’s Executive Director. “This commitment is a reflection of the work we have done and the work to come, as well as their commitment toward meaningful change.”

“We’re grateful to be able to collaborate and strategically align with partners like Wine Unify in hopes that this continued progress to drive representation in the beverage industry is mutually beneficial for years to come,” says Dwight Phyall, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Leader at Total Wine & More.

Total Wine & More is committed to giving back to the local community. In 2023 alone, they contributed over $13 million in monetary and in-kind donations to 16,000+ organizations, helping these causes raise more than $85 million to support their work in the community.

“The incredible thing about Wine Unify is its momentum. We remain a small, organic group of seasoned wine professionals who are willing to mentor our next leaders. At over 180 awards to date, we are changing lives, providing new career paths, and diversifying the wine business at every level through access and opportunity,” says DLynn Proctor, co-founder of Wine Unify.

The impact of Wine Unify is expansive, both in breadth and depth. Wine Unify mentors and alumni hold positions across the wine industry, as sommeliers and wine directors in restaurants, leading retailers, as winemakers, as writers, within the social justice segment, as educators and influencers, and their presence is only growing.

“Change is a moving target,” says Towns Franken. “We have come a long way, but we have a long way to go. The future of the wine industry is diversity, and we are so proud every day to champion it.”