How do I become an agent or importer in another country?

The short answer

Bella Principessa started small, sold bottle by bottle by our founder and his sister. Then we took what we learned to the US, one of the biggest export markets for Prosecco, and earned it again.

Answered by Michael Goldstein · Founder, Bella Principessa

The full answer

Bella Principessa started small, sold bottle by bottle by our founder and his sister. Then we took what we learned to the US, one of the biggest export markets for Prosecco, and earned it again.

We open markets the same way we open states: one at a time, with partners who know their territory, its licenses and the venues that set the tone.

Importer or agent: what’s the difference?

An importer buys the wine, brings it into the country under its own licenses, clears customs, pays the duties and taxes, and makes sure the label meets local rules. The importer owns the stock and sells it on, to distributors or straight to stores and venues where the law allows.

An agent represents the brand and opens doors, usually on commission, without owning the wine. Someone else imports and invoices.

Some companies do both. Either can work. What matters is that the route from the winery to the glass is legal, clear and run by people who will still be answering the phone in two years.

What we look for

  • Licenses in order for importing and selling wine in your country.
  • Real accounts: the stores, restaurants, bars and hotels you already sell to.
  • A home for a brand, not just a price list. We want to be someone’s Prosecco, not their fortieth wine.
  • A plan that starts small. One city, a few doors, then wider as the bottles sell.

What to send

  • Your country and the regions you cover.
  • Importer, agent or both.
  • Who you sell to today, and which wines.

Right now our attention is on the US. If your market is next, we’ll start the conversation. If it isn’t yet, we’ll say so and keep your details for when it is.

Submit interest →

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More in this topic

For stores, bars and partners

How can my store stock Bella Principessa?

Most Prosecco is chosen because it's there. Bella Principessa is chosen because it's remembered. On a shelf of look-alike labels, a ceramic-painted bottle doesn't need a shelf-talker. People pick it up because it's beautiful. They come back because the wine lives up to the bottle.

How stores order, where it sells, and chains
Can my bar, restaurant or hotel pour Bella Principessa?

On the floor, the bottle is the pitch. No paper label. Ceramic-painted glass, butterflies and flowers. It turns heads when it leaves the bar, and the next table orders one too.

How venues buy it, and where it fits on a menu
Why add Bella Principessa if we already carry a Prosecco?

Prosecco became famous before any Prosecco brand did. Ask a guest what they're drinking and you'll hear "Prosecco." Ask which one, and you'll usually get a shrug. Cold, available, good enough. The category did the selling. No brand had to.

The gap in most Prosecco sets, and what we fill
How do I become a Bella Principessa distributor?

In the US, every bottle reaches a shelf or a bar through a distributor. We know that, and we build for it. Since the end of Prohibition, most states have used a three-tier system. The importer brings the wine into the country. A licensed distributor (wholesaler) buys it and sells it to stores, restaurants, bars and hotels. Those retailers sell it to you. Each state writes its own rules, so a distributor is appointed state by state, and a wine that's sold in Florida isn't automatically sold in Georgia.

How US distribution works, and what to send us
What sizes and formats can partners order?

Two wines. One signature. Both come in ceramic-painted bottles with no paper label, and both are sealed with a cork under a wire cage. 750 mL is the standard US wine bottle: about 25.4 oz, or five 5 oz glasses. It's the size stores shelve, venues pour by the glass and bottle, and hosts buy by the case.

750 mL bottles, 200 mL minis, cases and delivery
I’m hosting an event. How can we collaborate with Bella Principessa?

Partnerships, not handouts. Prosecco brings people together. Bella Principessa gives them something to remember. We love events where friendship is the point, and we're proud to be part of the ones that give something back: a real place in the moment, guests who meet the brand, and a reason to look for it again.

What makes a good fit, and what to send us
What happens after I submit interest?

No black hole. A person reads it. Tell us more than you think you need to. The best submissions say: Specific beats polite. "Two wine bars in Miami pouring 30 bottles of Prosecco a week" tells us far more than "interested in your brand."

What happens next, and how to get a faster answer

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