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VOICE OVER: This is Alumni Aloud, a podcast by Graduate Center students for Graduate Center students. In each episode we talk with a GC graduate about their career path, the ins and outs of their current position, and the career advice they have for students. This series is sponsored by the Graduate Center’s Office of Career Planning & Professional Development. 

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CARLY BATIST, HOST: I spoke with Dr. Lauren Reches, who earned her PhD in French from the Graduate Center. She is currently the National Sales Director at Skurnik Wines & Spirits. In this episode, Lauren tells us about the many backgrounds represented in the wine industry, finishing her dissertation while also starting a career, and the importance of conferences for professional development.  

We’ll just start with who you are, what position you currently have and kind of trace PhD to now.  

LAUREN RECHES, GUEST: So my name is Lauren Reches and I am the National Sales Director for Skurnik Wines & Spirits, based in Manhattan. I first started in the wine industry about 10 years ago. I was finishing up my classwork in the PhD in French at the CUNY Graduate Center. And I was also working in restaurants on the side because, you know, as lovely as it is to teach a few classes, we all know that we need a couple bucks on the side as well.  

So when I was working in restaurants, I met a gentleman who owned his own import company and we got to talking about my dissertation actually because his company was French-based. And he is also quite an intellectual person. And as we were talking at the restaurant he said “you should come work for me” and at the time I thought it was crazy because I thought my career path was always going to be academia, that’s what I’m destined for. Actually, I ran into him a year or two later and at that point my life had changed a little bit. I was about to do my orals and I said “Hey, I’d like to re-consider that job, I think it would be very interesting.”  

So I started working for this French import company and they also did some Italian wines but mostly French-based. It was nice to be able to use my French in a different type of setting as well. I was able to speak with producers when they came to visit us in the United States, to take them around and explain to them a little bit about how the market runs here. Even though most of them spoke English very well, it was helpful to develop a close relationship with them by kind of breaking down that barrier.      

I went to my current company 2 years later. I loved the job I had but realized that I had started at kind-of level 10 of a position and I had really never done anything in this industry before and I wanted to find a place where I could start at the bottom and work my way back up. I think as academics we’re the type of people that are like no, no, no; I need to learn alllll the things that go into this first. I can’t just start at 10 and pretend I belong here. I need to start at the basics, I need to learn the background.  

So that’s when I started work at Skurnik Wines & Spirits, and I honestly started off with order entry, answering the phones, putting in orders for New York/Connecticut/New Jersey restaurants and retail wine shops. And started working hard and working my way up, and this was at the same time as I was writing my dissertation on the side. When I started at Skurnik Wines I felt like “this is where I want to be,” and I always loved food and wine. In fact, my dissertation topic was on food and wine in France in the early-20th century, so it was tying my loves together. So I loved doing [the dissertation] but I also wanted to continue in this industry and do a little bit more with it and see where I could go and explore more of the French wine side of it. At the same time, I realized it was important for me that I had put so much work into [the dissertation], had already spent 6 years doing my doctorate. And I really enjoyed it, I enjoyed my topic and I’m not the type of person to quit.  

It was really important to me if you put so much work into something, and I had written maybe a chapter of my dissertation by the time I decided I was staying in this industry more completely, but I really wanted to stick with it and finish it. I stayed late after work trying to finish things. It took me a long time to figure out how to fit it into my schedule for work because I had a 9 to 5 job. At one point I had gotten enough promotions that I was doing national sales, so I was starting to travel and going to France, to Germany, to Austria and around the US selling wine and talking about wine and educating people about wine as well. Which was great, but it leaves very little time to really schedule yourself regularly to finish a dissertation.  

So it was a challenge, but after a lot of trying to figure things out and adjusting my schedule I kind of figured out that if I stopped the clock at 5 and I stayed for an extra two hours to do research and write, I could finish it. And I managed to do that, so I was very happy for myself. I think it was nice that the company I worked for was very proud of me too. To be able to see someone work really hard and be able to put in time to their job but also succeed in such an accomplishment in their eyes because none of them from that background. It was pretty interesting. Very, very tough but well worth it.   

BATIST: Yes, I think a lot of students who are thinking about that and are ABD (or not) and have the same dilemma.  

RECHES: Yes definitely. I think in a way, when you’re taking classes it’s easier to work out in your mind “oh I can’t do these two things together.” But when you’re writing it’s just so easy to put things off and say, “Oh I’ll do it tomorrow.” But at the same time, it’s easy enough to find a small chunk in your day wherever that works out, you can get it done. Which is nice. It’s ok, it’s not ideal, but it’s ok if it takes you 5 years to write it. It’s a long time, but it’s done.  

BATIST: Yeah, and I mean a lot of students at the end are trying to finish while adjuncting and stuff too whereas you had a more stable job than semester-by-semester adjuncts so I imagine in some ways that relieved at least some of the financial stress of “am I going to get re-appointed next semester.” You at least didn’t have that.  

RECHES: That is very true. The good thing is that while I was working a lot, I had a very steady income and I think that also maybe an advantage is that when you’re in a 9 to 5, your day is pretty structured for you. You know you have the 5 days a week you’re working and you’re putting in a 9 to 5 hour day so you can mentally carve out that time during the day perhaps a little bit easier than if you’re adjuncting. 

BATIST: Yes, the schedule is a bit more stable for you, as well as the salary. So, when you started the PhD, academia was the goal at that point? 

RECHES: Absolutely, I wanted to be a professor so badly. I loved teaching, I thought it was a lot of fun. But I think it was really my love for French and food and wine. And in the wine industry that I’m in, there is almost an education aspect in it because you’re learning some pretty academic-related things. I mean you’re learning about geography, you’re learning about geology, you’re learning about climate patterns in order to describe wine. You know, you have a dictionary of thousands of different grapes that you’re trying to learn the tiny, minute differences between. There are a ton of academics in this industry in fact; it really draws people in because it’s pretty geeky. You study a whole bunch of things and you’re learning history and so it’s very appealing in that way and I realized that it allowed me an outlet for all of my passions to really come together. 

BATIST: So what does a day look like for you? Are there different things depending on the season, I imagine? Or particular kind of weekly things that repeat themselves? How do your tasks break down like that? 

RECHES: Well it’s a really interesting discussion to have these days versus a “typical” year. Because my current job now is national sales director and as national sales director, I oversee a team of about 6 or 7 people, most of whom are spread out throughout the United States. In the wine industry there is what we call a tiered system. So my job is to work on the import side, so I help get the wine to the US, and then I sell to different distributors that are around the US, and those distributors in each state will sell wine and spirits to retail shops, liquor stores, restaurants, restaurant groups. So as you can imagine, a lot of my job is helping to oversee this team, whose often on the road and traveling. Making sure they have the information they need, organizing when wine is going to be coming to the US and what the new vintage is going to be and be like and making sure the correct information is in the hands of my team so they can properly sell the wine. Even trying to work on pricing structures so we can incentivize people.  

There’s a lot that goes on. During a typical year, I would say a lot of my job too is also traveling around the US to help educate people in different states and present the wines to them, maybe host events and things like that. And also to travel to Europe. My side of the company is heavily based in French wine, especially Grower’s champagne and some German and Austrian wine. So a lot of my job is taking trips regularly to visit our wine-makers, our producers and make sure we are developing a relationship. Making sure I understand what their needs are and what their goals are for sales in the US market. And that they understand what sorts of things are happening in the US and that can help them to understand any challenges we’re experiencing or things that we might need. But also, to walk through vineyards with them and to get to know what’s happening that current year and what happened the year before and how that’s affecting the taste of the wine so that I can help translate that to everyone in the United States whether it’s on the consumer level, whether it’s a restaurant, whether it’s someone buying the wine, selling the wine. That’s a huge part of our job and right now, that’s completely gone.  

So the day to day has really changed. It’s been a challenge, but in a way I think it’s been very good for us not to be able to travel anymore because it’s allowed us to think differently about how to approach sales and how to approach education in this current climate because we can’t just get on a plane and sit in front of someone or host a seminar, you know. The education aspect is very similar to academia; we’re used to having this in-person seminar interaction in order to learn and ask questions. And all of us are learning know just how much we can accomplish remotely. Maybe that’s a good thing. I think of a conference I took part in in Belgium, for example. And man, I loved going to Belgium ever just for two or three days and being to present and see people in person but it’s expensive and a lot of the times when we’re working on our dissertations and teaching, we just don’t have that type of money to buy a plane ticket to present and maybe, you know, this is teaching us all that we can work a little differently and we can have a conference hosted by a university in Europe or anywhere and people can participate without having to perhaps spend money on hotels and travel.  

BATIST: Yeah, for sure. So how are you interacting with the wine makers in Europe? Are they taking you on virtual tours of the vineyards now?  

RECHES: Yeah so on our level, with the travel we used to do, we’re doing a lot more virtual meetings and talks. Unfortunately, we can’t be tasting wine out of barrel that just finished fermenting or that kind of exciting thing. That’s been the hardest part for this industry because of how important tasting is. Wine changes so much year to year and a winemaker may choose to do a different thing with a barrel or different thing with a vineyard than they typically do or change what percentage of Chardonnay is going to be in a blend. And that changes the taste of the wine. The hardest part we’ve experienced in this industry is trying to figure out the tasting aspects of it. But, the virtual aspects have been nice. It’s been nice to be able to realize that we can get on the phone with someone and have them turn on their camera and walk through a vineyard and tell you “hey this is that vineyard I’ve always been talking about” and I don’t have to travel there. I don’t know, in my mind it’s kind of interesting that we haven’t even thought of doing things like before.  

BATIST: Right. 

RECHES: And I think it’s also been really good for education on like a smaller level because before, for example, we had a lot of restaurants or wine shops that want to do a seminar for consumers, for their customers. And to be able to have a wine maker there is so invaluable to them. But the amount of coordination it takes because maybe a winemaker can travel once or twice a year. Being a farmer, which is what they are, is extremely demanding work and they’ve got to be there all the time. And so, maybe they’ll travel once a year. But now, it’s much easier for them to be able to do something in the evening, virtually, with those customers. So that’s been, I think, a really great innovation that I hope carries on, because at least they can do a virtual seminar with someone’s customers directly and it’s a great way for them to connect with those consumers that they wouldn’t normally know and to connect with that person whose been such a supporter of their wines. That’s been really great, I think.  

BATIST: Yes, definitely. So you had mentioned that you had gotten this first job at the French importers’ through just interacting with this person. How did you then get an “in” at Skurnik and what was that more formal application process like? 

RECHES: Right when I figured out that I wanted to do something in the same industry but take a little bit of a step back, I just started looking at job postings. WineJobs.com and things like that, just to see what was out there. And I did one interview with someone who said “I really like you but I don’t think this is the job for you. However, I know someone else who is looking for someone just like you.” So he was the one that introduced me to Skurnik and put my resume in front of them and said they’re hiring and I think you’d be great. So I went through a more formal interview process with them. I think I had to do an interview with the sales manager and then a separate interview with the two owners of the company. And go through that process and then, as I said, I started after maybe a two-month interview process at the bottom, entering orders. That was the agreement. They said well we really like you but we want you to start at the beginning and build from the ground up so you have a better background and kind of get adjusted into everything and learn a little bit more about the wines. And so I did. 

BATIST: Was it difficult to try to compile application documents that weren’t academic? Like CV to a resume and how did navigate that kind of switch.  

RECHES: I think I was very lucky in this industry and for the company I interviewed for. Because the company that I work for, they pride themselves in hiring people that they see potential in and that have interesting goals and interests that may or may not be related to experience actually in the industry just yet. I’ll never the re-doing my resume and looking at it and going “what do I keep on here?” Do I keep on that I was an adjunct? Do they even care that I taught French at Brooklyn College or Baruch? But what I’ve learned is, when people see that you’re working towards a PhD, they know that you want to work hard. You’re willing to put in the work. And so it translates itself in a different way. I was lucky to have also met the importer for French wines that I had before, who had given me an opportunity to get my foot in the door and get a little bit of experience. I’ve done a lot of interviews personally now in my job and it doesn’t even matter what their background experience is. For me, it’s like the dedication to something is so important, because it shows you’re going to dedicate yourself to every company you work for. You’re not going to be the type of person that takes one job and moves to another one in 6 months and then gets bored and moves to something else in a year. It says so much to be able to see that type of consistency and dedication to something.  

BATIST: Yes, absolutely. You’ve kind of touched on this a little bit, but what skills did you use or refine in the PhD that have helped you even outside of academia? 

RECHES: I really think, I can’t emphasize enough, the participation in conferences and the importance that’s been outside of academia. I think it’s the learning how to speak without necessarily holding a cue card or to be able to answer questions. All the experience towards preparing something to present and then presenting it in-person has been extremely, extremely helpful. I feel like in my industry and in so many others, you’re in situations a lot where you have to present yourself or present a project, and it can be incredibly nerve-wracking if you’re not normally in front of people. And to be able to have that experience has been, I think, extremely helpful. And also the fact that in academia you’re used to being just drilled with these questions that are throwing you for a loop…being able to think on your feet like that for business and even for sales is just so good. And even learning how to say “That is a really interesting point and question that I haven’t been able to think of before. And I think it would be really interesting to continue to do research in that area.” That type of skill I think is so important.  

BATIST: You mentioned you work in a fairly small team. What are the backgrounds of the people you work with? And beyond in in the larger company, you mentioned a bit that there are a number of academics in there so what is the mix and how does that impact the culture of the company?  

RECHES: I think that’s a good question. It’s interesting because this is a really diverse industry. A lot of industries like business or marketing, people are MBA graduates or they studied marketing and then they go into the marketing field. And for the wine and spirits industry, people come from a little bit of everywhere. There are a lot of people that have studied theater. And no surprise because there is a performance aspect in education and sales and things like that. I’ve worked with and continue to work with some people who have backgrounds in opera singing. A lot of people with arts backgrounds or even chemistry. People come from all different levels of backgrounds, educations. It’s very interesting, especially if you talk to someone from Europe, for example. In Europe, if you’re in the wine industry, you were always in a college program that had wine and wine marketing and wine sales. But here we just don’t have that. We don’t have programs like that. It’s interesting to compare where people come from with a European background to get into this, versus the United States.  

BATIST: You mentioned you’re doing a lot of interviews now. What would you recommend to students who are potentially thinking about industry and how to format their application documents and how to prepare for interviews? What did you wish someone told you before then or what did someone tell you that was really good advice? 

RECHES: I think that going back to the idea of understanding the strengths of where you came from and believing in those strengths. As corny as it sounds to say, “believe in yourself,” I think a lot of us in academia spend a lot of time coming down on ourselves. We could always be doing more, that we’re not doing enough. You have the “I shouldn’t be here” syndrome. And I think mentally that kind of translates when you’re interviewing for a job outside of the industry. But I think the most important thing is to remember how valuable your background and dedication and skills that you’re learning are even to apply to something outside of academia. Everything we’ve discussed: learning how to present yourself, how to research. A lot of people don’t understand how to do proper research. And it’s very difficult for them to write properly or to put together a concise document of findings or thoughts. That’s something we’ve worked very hard in, in graduate school and that is an incredible skill that is valuable to almost any industry that you could possibly think of. So I think it’s understanding what your strengths are and having confidence in those strengths when you go into an interview or when you’re trying to put together your resume so that you can approach that new job realizing that you do belong there and that you can add something, and maybe something that other people interviewing for that job can’t. 

BATIST: What was the biggest switch that you found yourself having to make between academic lifestyle and industry lifestyle? 

RECHES: Good question. I think honestly one of the hardest things to get used to was the lack of flexibility. You know, when you start graduate school it’s almost hard to get used to the flexibility you have and the down time and when to apply yourself, as we kind of discussed before. And to go to a 9 to 5 job where you are told you have 2 weeks of paid vacation. You go “2 weeks?! That’s it, that’s all I have off in this entire year?” It seems crazy but it’s easy to get used to. You may be working a different type of day and be less flexible on the day to day or the hour to hour than you’re used to being. But in the end, I think the regularity is kind of nice because you’re able to turn it off. Whereas in graduate school you really can’t turn it off. It’s always there, you’re always thinking about it. It’s a Sunday afternoon and I’m thinking, “Should I be writing? Should I be researching? I shouldn’t be enjoying myself right now.” My husband always joked with me when I finished my dissertation that I had to learn how to relax again. Because I honestly had no idea how to just sit down and read a novel that I wanted to read and be ok with that. 

BATIST: I can imagine that. It’s a whole paradigm shift you have to make in your brain to adjust to that. So we’re almost wrapped up, is there anything else that you think is relevant or any other advice that you’d like to share? What you think the outlet for this field is moving forward?  

RECHES: I definitely think that if there are academics, especially those who have those chemistry or artistic backgrounds and language backgrounds, this part of the industry, the wine and spirits industry is a really fun place to be. Especially if you have a passion for wine or you worked in restaurants for awhile and have a background in it. It’s a really interesting industry to explore. And it’s a fun place to work. There are definitely niche categories to it, which is why I think academics love it so much. It’s like “Wow I’m always learning something.” And as soon as I think I’ve learned everything then something changes! New vintage, a winemaker retires and passes something on to his son who does something completely different, all of a sudden China’s making wine, It’s always changing and you’re always to study.  

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BATIST, VOICE-OVER: That’s a wrap for this episode of Alumni Aloud. I want to thank Lauren for sharing her experience working in the wine industry. Remember to stay tuned for more episodes of Alumni Aloud, published every 2 weeks during the fall and spring semesters. Subscribe on iTunes and you’ll automatically be notified of new episodes. Also check out our Facebook, Twitter and career planning website at cuny.is/careerplan for more updates from our office or to make appointments with our career counselors. Thanks for listening and see you next time!   

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