Today we’d like to introduce you to Yellymary Montalvo.
Hi Yellymary, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers?
After 10 years successfully running and operating my wine bar in Florida decided it was time to change things up and decided to move to the Carolinas area. We have been coming to the area for the last 7 years, and our trips became more frequent, and we found it harder going back to Florida. So, moving to the area seemed like the most logical step. I am a WSET Level 3 Diploma Student, Spanish Wine Scholar Guild Certified, and a Sommelier. With this wealth of information decided to then concentrate on wine education as there was nothing like this in the area. With this is mind, I decided to open North Carolina Wine Academy last year, and thanks to the success of the brand, we decided to expand to Greenville as well. We offer professional certifications training, consumer-friendly wine tastings and experience, consulting for bars and restaurants, and private cellar acquisition and planning as well.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
Well, I don’t think any successful business can exist without its struggles. Yes, we have hit plenty of block rocks. From people not understanding our services and what we do and offer as nobody else is doing it in this part of the state. Of course, the finding initial capital, sustaining afloat, and Omnicron when we had just launched did not make it a smooth ride either. We have been able to battle each one of them, but I think at this point, the biggest struggle that we still face is people not understanding what we do, what are the professional certifications and what it can do for them professionally, and the concept that you can have a career in the wine industry far beyond working the floor. Education is the key to everything, and we are here for that purpose.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
We offer professional certifications in wine such as WSET L1, L2, and coming this summer, L3. We also offer the French Wine Scholar and the Spanish Wine Scholar Guild. We also offer consumer classes for those wanting to learn more about wine, along with private events, cellar management, and wine consulting. In contrast to the others, we have our own brick-and-mortar building where we also offer retail wines for sale to our students, along with a pop-up wine bar. For more information on classes and about us, visit www.ncwineacademy.com.
Can you talk to us about how you think about risk?
Well, once again… once you decide to be an entrepreneur, everything is about risk-taking. There is no more safe paycheck and rather the uncertainty, but the winning factor is that you work for yourself under your own terms and hopefully doing what you love. The biggest risk that I have taken up to this point in my life was closing a successful wine bar and restaurant safely operating for many years with a safe and devoted clientele to move to another state and open another business in a whole completely scale and spectrum. Once we do the same thing over and over, we become complacent, and taking risks is avoided. In my case, I just knew that it was now or never to take this opportunity and do something different and something that I am passionate about. I also love my wine bar dearly, along with my guests and friends, but wine education is a calling, and I feel honored to be able to share this passion with the Carolinas now. Yes, I am a risk-taker, but I only see each opportunity as one for growing professionally and personally. Risks make us challenge ourselves and what we can achieve.
Contact Info:
- Email: ncwineacademy@gmail.com
- Website: www.ncwineacademy.com
- Instagram: ncwineacademy, cavawineschool
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ncwineacademy, https://www.facebook.com/cavawineschool
Image Credits
Jeanie Albers
North Carolina Wine Academy
