Thomas Mathews, Wine Spectator executive editor boldly said, “Spain is the most exciting and dynamic wine producing country in Europe today,” during the 2009 Food Network South Beach Wine & Food Festival where Spanish wines took center stage. Their Majesties King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sofia cut the ribbon at the Wines from Spain Pavilion at the Wine Spectator Trade Tasting Day. Other exciting events throughout the festival included:

• Their Majesties King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sofia were the guests of honor at ¡Viva España!, The Wines and Foods from Spain, held at the Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables. Jose Andres, a renowned chef and host of the PBS series “Made in Spain,” served as the culinary chairman for the event. Mario Batali, award-winning and internationally acclaimed chef and author of “Spain… A Culinary Road Trip,” served as the evening’s emcee.

• Festival goers sipped the wines of Rioja at the Amstel Light Burger Bash - hosted by Rachael Ray and presented by Allen Brothers. Vibrant Rioja was the exclusive wine sponsor of the event.

• The Wines from Spain Pavilion in the Whole Foods Market Grand Tasting Village featured more than 100 wines from more than 20 producers from regions across Spain.

• The Fontainebleau Miami Beach hosted the Wine Spectator’s Best of the Best sponsored by Bank of America and featuring the following Spanish wineries: Bodegas Montecillo, Campo Viejo, Freixenet, Grupo Barón de Ley, Grupo Pesquera, Marqués de Riscal, Pago de Vallegarcia, Segura Viudas and Torres.

• Various Spanish wineries also participated in seven individual Wine Spectator’s Wine Seminar Series throughout the festival, including presentations from Victor Charcán of Grupo Barón de Ley; Miguel Torres, Jr. of Torres Group; Jose Luis Muguiro of Marqués de Riscal; Elena Adell, the winemaker at Campo Viejo; Carlos Falcó, the president of Pagos de Familia Marqués de Griñon; Vicente Dalmau Cebrián-Sagarriga; Count of Creixell, the president of Marqués de Murrieta; and Pablo Alvarez, the owner of Vega Sicilia.

• Steve Olson, noted wine educator and Sherry expert, hosted two seminars as part of the Bank of America Lifestyle Wine and Spirits Seminars at the Loews Miami Beach Hotel.

Four months ago, Amy Quick, a student in the MBA program at George Fox University, had a dream job in the business travel division of American Express.

When credit markets soured last fall, however, she joined thousands of Oregonians in search of work. And she quickly realized the hard truth: An MBA is no longer a ticket to Easy Street.

“The MBA market is becoming oversaturated very quickly,” Quick said. “MBAs are losing their jobs every day. It’s not going to necessarily win a position anymore. ”

A November survey by the Graduate Management Admission Council points to a tightening market for new MBA grads. Seventeen percent of the companies responding to the survey said they did not hire any MBAs from the class of 2008. As for the class of 2009, 30 percent of the firms in the survey said they either will not, or probably will not, hire this year’s graduates. Bob Ludwig, a spokesman for the council, said the job market has worsened since GMAC conducted the survey.

Meanwhile, pay for the class of 2009 is expected to be flat compared to last year, after years of trending upward, the survey found.

“This is the most difficult search environment I’ve ever been associated with,” said Robert W. Ridel, an instructor in the MBA program at the Oregon campus of the University of Phoenix.

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Tanner Halton recently took over at Halton Co., a business founded 69 years ago by his grandfather, Ted Halton Sr.  Not surprisingly, the outlook for heavy equipment sales this year is bleak. One Portland company hopes the remedy is a little fresh blood.

Halton Co., a 69-year-old family company and the oldest dealer of Caterpillar Inc. heavy industry equipment in the Northwest, is streamlining its sales model and reaching out to new industries as it attempts to remain competitive.

Leading the charge is 29-year-old Tanner Halton, the third-generation general manager of the company who is taking cues from his grandfather’s legacy. Halton Co. was launched in 1940 by Ted Halton Sr., Tanner’s grandfather.

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Living sustainably is often about making smart small choices that add up. But where to start? Check out Ideal Bite – www.idealbite.com. This daily e-mail service offers “bite-sized ideas for light green living.”

It’s quick, clever and might just inspire some simple changes that help the environment and your wallet.

We all know that, when used correctly, social networking sites (like Facebook) and microblogging services (such as Twitter) can be an excellent means of promoting new products or services and even building brand loyalty.  I am always listening for good examples of how this is being done in the real world, and yesterday, I heard one. A woman was shopping at a local clothier for vacation attire.  As she was ringing up her purchases, the salesperson asked her if she was going somewhere fun.  When she replied “Costa Rica,” the salesperson handed her a card inscribed with the store’s Facebook page and Flickr account. “When you get there, take pictures of yourself in your new clothes and post them to our sites!”  Assuming the woman takes the retailer up on the offer, this clever tactic serves several purposes:

1. The retailer gains greater reach by adding the woman to the retailer’s group of “friends.”  By doing so, the woman has essentially given her permission to receive special offers, messages and news from the retailer.
2. The retailer earns a third party endorsement. 
3. The retailer gives emphasis to its position as a lifestyle brand for jet setters.
4. The retailer has an instant ad campaign without paying travel costs, model and photographer fees.

Another thing the retailer could have done to gain greater involvement?  Incent shoppers to post their photos by holding a monthly drawing for an all-expense paid trip to another exotic locale.

A number of members of the media have told me they think traditional trade shows are dying, albeit a slow death. While this varies depending on the industry the trade show serves, the editor of an engineering publication, whose staff traditionally frequented industry shows, believes the trade show will be obsolete within the next five years due to associated costs and resources. And it will be replaced by the virtual show.

About a week later, during my travels to Chicago, I picked up the Tribune and found this interesting piece on the same topic and showcasing some success stories of virtual shows http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-mon-virtual-trade-show-feb23,0,1946913.story

Just like the ever increasing interaction online has substituted old fashioned phone calls and long business lunches, will the virtual trade show really be able to successfully replace the more subtle but undeniably better connection you get with someone after having an in-person conversation and a handshake?

I had the most amazing experience ever in my public relations career last weekend at the 2009 South Beach Wine & Food Festival in Miami, Fla.  It was the most incredible event I’ve ever been to –top tier media and celebrity chefs everywhere I went!   I was there representing a client, the Wines from Spain, and the biggest highlight of the weekend was when Their Majesties the King and Queen of Spain, Juan Carlos I and Sofia, made an appearance at the Wines from Spain Pavilion to kick off the festival.  It was a momentous day for Spanish wines and I was thrilled to be a part of it!  I even got to shake the King’s hand. 

The next day, I met Natalie Morales from the Today Show – she stopped by the Pavilion and I was happy to learn that she’s a fan of Spanish wines!  She was extremely nice and great to talk to.  I met so many incredible journalists at the festival and savored the great food of Miami.  It was an unforgettable weekend!

I was on the road for two weeks in February, with a client talking to media, and was able to gain some firsthand insight into how the media is changing and what it’s like to be a reporter or editor these days.

A few takeaways:
• Video is essential. A number of editors strongly encouraged me to work with my clients on embedding video into press releases.  Video is a critical component of keeping readers on news Web sites. The media want press releases to be more visual and engaging than the standard text format with a quote from the company.

Videos must be short in length. How-to demonstrations accompanying new products or services are well received.

• Print is still alive. While the shift to online news consumption is very real, a number of media I spoke with (note most of these media are trade/vertical focused serving engineers and the electronics industry) believe while frequency of their print editions may lessen, the print magazine will continue to be what keeps readers coming back. Specifically, technical papers and in-depth features continue to be in high demand.

• Content is king – and media needs our help with it. They want fresh content that is brief and informative. Tutorials, how-tos, instruction and never-before-seen information that will keep readers coming back for more. Also, articles authored by industry leaders provide unique viewpoints to readers and take the burden off of the typically lean editorial staff.

It started with a viral marketing video that would either take the blogosphere by storm or tank into obscurity. A young, freckled boy with dirty blond hair tells his parents at dinner, “The economy’s not what it used to be. It’s time to start my own thing.”

His “thing” turns out to be a lemonade stand—the original small business. In subsequent scenes, the boy tests lemonade recipes, looks under the couch for spare coins to use as startup money and presents a colorful business plan on an over-sized piece of paper. He then goes to Umpqua Bank and speaks with a loan officer, who approves a loan for the lemonade stand because, “There’s no way I could say no.”

Ultimately, the boy gets his lemonade stand up and running, the dollars pour in and he’s able to purchase a car—albeit a toy car.

Dubbed “The Lemonaire,” this viral video was produced by the marketing team at Umpqua Bank, an Oregon bank famous for nontraditional marketing and customer service. You can still view the video online at http://www.lemonaire.com/.

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MAKING ENDS MEET — Erin Milos started attending the University of Phoenix Oregon Campus in Tigard when she realized she needed more than a minimum wage job to help support her family.

 ”We aren’t looking to be millionaires, we are just looking to support our family.”

Those words of Erin Milos echo the goal of many Oregonians these days. With the state’s number of unemployed reaching a record high since 1983, and large corporations laying off workers and small shops shutting down, jobs – any jobs – are in high demand.

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With so many hotels bragging about their high-tech amenities, once in a while it’s nice to find a place that actually celebrates the lost art of reading.

The Heathman Hotel in Portland has a library with more than 3,000 signed, first-edition books by authors who have stayed there, including 5 Nobel Prize winners.

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