| Abstrakt: |
Purpose: According to Le, H.T.P.M., Ren, T. and Park, J. (2023), quality and premium brand authenticity are two important predictors of perceived value and, as we know, the image of Port Wine around the world is deeply associated with quality. The main goal of this study was to identify new market opportunities for the Port Wine cluster. There are some indicators showing that this cluster is in the maturity stage and suffers from hard global competition. Starting from this evidence, three main goals were designed: i) to select and study the Port Wine external market environment; ii) to propose some multimedia strategies to improve Port Wine sales and, at the same time, to identify new market opportunities; and iii) to develop a real case study introducing the students from three interdisciplinary ISAG-EBS courses - International Management, English II and Multimedia Content and Media Production - to research and critical thinking. Methodology: The case presented here was carried out as part of an interdisciplinary project that aimed to get students to integrate knowledge from the International Management, English II and Multimedia Content and Media Production curricular units, by applying it to a practical work that could be interesting to international markets. Bearing in mind the potential of Port Wine and the particular characteristics of this product when considering it as part of the Portuguese cultural heritage, the teaching team suggested that the research should focus on promoting Port Wine in new markets that are still underdeveloped at an international level. To this end, a master class was first held, at ISAG, on March 28, with a guest speaker, George Sandeman, a Port Wine specialist and CEO of Exampulla, who gave a contextualization on Port Wine, its characteristics, existing markets and the product's potential in terms of exporting it to new markets. This was followed by a period of reflection by the students, guided by the teachers, which culminated in the creation of interview scripts to be conducted with experts in podcast format. In addition to these interviews, the students were encouraged to research information about the market in order to find out which countries import Port Wine the most and which markets are still under-explored. Results: Based on the methodology presented, the students delved into the selected topic in the following way: in International Management, they analyzed the expert interviews and researched and gathered more information; in English II, they translated texts originally written in Portuguese into English; and, in Content Production and Multimedia, they integrated all the information into a multimedia support. The outcomes are the following: - Logo for the project - Podcast with George Sandeman - from Exampulla; - Podcast with Pedro Crespo - from Real Companhia Velha; - The soul of Port Wine; - Benefits of wine, when consumed in moderation; - Curiosities about this product that is unique in the world; - Website that includes all the results identified above, as well as a historical overview of this product and a presentation of the potential markets to be developed. Research limitations: As this project was developed during the last semester of the academic year, it has not yet been widely disseminated to audiences outside ISAG, both nationally and internationally. Consequently, it is not yet possible to measure its impact. Furthermore, only two interviews were carried out. More interviews could be carried out in order to gather the opinion of other experts on the emerging markets for Port Wine. Originality: This project combines expertise on three scientific areas: management, multimedia, and modern languages. It enabled students to consider the concept of “cultural heritage” in order to interrogate the possibility of devising new market opportunities for a Portuguese product deeply intertwined with Portuguese history and the country’s economic fabric. Furthermore, the project enabled students to understand the importance of preserving cultural memory and traditional habits while simultaneously celebrating moderation and healthy lifestyles. From the students’ point of view, this kind of interdisciplinary project is essential to involve both students and teachers in a challenge that goes beyond the boundaries of theory and practice to engage with the world of business as it is, was and can be. Being a part of this project provided the students with a wide range of ideas with business potential and it increased their knowledge on the internationalization of brands. The interview with George Sandeman enabled students to understand that a brand is an ongoing project, a huge journey of changes, challenges, wins and losses, and specially a catalyst because it is all about combining resources and knowledge to bring positive change to the world. Port Wine is an excellent example of how a brand can keep its identity, values, and growth, while bringing enjoyment, happiness, and positive change. Being a Port Wine consumer means being a part of a great story of success. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
