# Barefoot Wine: Bonnie Harvey and Michael Houlihan

- Show: [How I Built This](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this)
- Published: 2024-09-16
- Length: 1h 15m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-09-16-barefoot-wine-bonnie-harvey-and-michael-houlihan

## Summary

Bonnie Harvey and Michael Houlihan, founders of Barefoot Wine, explain how they pivoted from accounting and consulting to building a $500 million wine brand after acquiring $300,000 worth of debt in bulk wine from the bankrupt Sovereign Winery. They disrupted the industry by marketing wine like beer, targeting everyday female shoppers with a consistent, non-vintage flavor profile and a distinctive footprint logo, while bypassing initial rejection from major buyers like Lucky Supermarkets by securing traction with Trader Joe's. After two decades of grinding through distribution challenges and maintaining cash flow via a 'cliff report,' they sold the company to E & J Gallo in 2005, recognizing that scaling required resources beyond their small team's capacity.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-09-16-barefoot-wine-bonnie-harvey-and-michael-houlihan#t=0) Introduction: Bonnie Harvey and Michael Houlihan
- [11:40](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-09-16-barefoot-wine-bonnie-harvey-and-michael-houlihan#t=700) The Debt-for-Wine Deal with Sovereign Winery
- [26:09](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-09-16-barefoot-wine-bonnie-harvey-and-michael-houlihan#t=1569) Developing the Brand: Name, Label, and Product Strategy
- [39:07](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-09-16-barefoot-wine-bonnie-harvey-and-michael-houlihan#t=2347) Pivoting to Beer Marketing and Independent Retailers
- [47:07](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-09-16-barefoot-wine-bonnie-harvey-and-michael-houlihan#t=2827) Community Marketing and Overcoming Distribution Failures
- [1:06:18](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-09-16-barefoot-wine-bonnie-harvey-and-michael-houlihan#t=3978) Scaling to 500,000 Cases and the Sale to E & J Gallo

## Topics

- [Starting a product company](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/starting-a-company)
- [Marketing & brand](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/marketing-and-brand)
- [Pricing, margins & unit economics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pricing-and-unit-economics)
- [Logistics & fulfilment](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/logistics-and-fulfillment)
- [Growth, exits & acquisitions](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/growth-exits-and-acquisitions)

## Most relevant to

founders before launch, early-stage companies, companies scaling up

## Mentioned

- Barefoot Wine (product)
- E & J Gallo (company)
- Sovereign Winery (company)
- Trader Joe's (company)
- Lucky Supermarkets (company)
- Robert Mondavi (product)
- Chateau Lafitte (product)
- Sebastiani (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [From Hand Sanitizer to Tomato Sauce - How Sauz Went From 10 Doors to 3,500 in a Year](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2026-08-29-from-hand-sanitizer-to-tomato-sauce-how-sauz-went-from-10-doors-to-3-500-in-a-ye) (The Startup CPG Podcast)
- [Founder Feature - Fane He and Kyle Nguyen of  The Lucky Ox](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2025-06-20-founder-feature-fane-he-and-kyle-nguyen-of-the-lucky-ox) (The Startup CPG Podcast)
- [Founder Fundraising Journey: Victor Guardiola, Bawi](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2026-08-01-founder-fundraising-journey-victor-guardiola-bawi) (The Startup CPG Podcast)
- [Founder Feature: Emmanuel Waters and Courtney Tucker of Old Hillside Bourbon](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2026-03-06-founder-feature-emmanuel-waters-and-courtney-tucker-of-old-hillside-bourbon) (The Startup CPG Podcast)
- [40 - Santiago Navarro, CEO of Garcon Wines](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/people-of-packaging/2020-12-08-40-santiago-navarro-ceo-of-garcon-wines) (People of Packaging)

## Citing this page

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