NFT luxury wines & spirits platform BlockBar has appointed Jamie Ritchie as its COO, effectively July.
A highly respected industry figure, Ritchie brings a wealth of experience to the start-up company from his more than 32 years of service at Sotheby’s, where he is currently Worldwide Chairman of the Wines & Spirits division.
He holds a reputation for innovation, strategic planning, client service, relationships and operational excellence, Blockbar noted.
Ritchie is notable for having launched Sotheby’s wine auctions in New York, Hong Kong and France, as well as its spirits category. He led the commercial success of the wine and spirits portfolio, which saw revenues rise to US$132 million.
He was also instrumental in driving the company’s record-high auction sales and holds the records for selling the most expensive bottles of both wine and spirits.
BlockBar Co-Founder and CEO Dov Falic said: “Jamie Ritchie is recognised worldwide as a leader in the wine and spirits industry, and we are delighted and honoured that he is joining our team. The fact that he has chosen to join an innovative startup like BlockBar is a testament to our business model and will help us to play a leading role in the evolution of the distribution of wine and spirits worldwide.
“More people than ever are purchasing liquid assets, both for consuming with friends and for investment, and BlockBar simplifies the purchase process. Based on the tremendous response to the unique bottles offered on our platform during our first year of operations, we are very confident about BlockBar’s rapid growth and we project significant revenue multiples over the next few years.”
As reported, BlockBar was founded by cousins Dov and Sam Falic of The Falic Group, owners of Duty Free Americas.
The company is described as the world’s premier NFT marketplace that connects consumers and collectors with the owners of luxury wine & spirits brands through the exchange of NFTs for unique wines and spirits.
BlockBar sources exclusive wine and spirits directly from luxury brand owners, including Moët Hennessy, Diageo, Rémy Cointreau, Bacardi, Treasury Wine Estates, Pernod Ricard and William Grant & Sons, to ensure that each bottle purchased is 100% authentic.
To underline that authenticity, the company provides a digital version of each bottle which can be traced back all the way to the winery or distillery. Purchasers of the digital version may resell, gift or redeem the physical bottle at any time.
The physical bottles are stored in a state-of-the-art facility in Singapore and can be shipped door-to-door worldwide or can be collected at any 250+ duty free locations. ✈
