Marion Pfitscher, Master in Business Management / Food & Wine: “A 360-degree growth path”
3 September 2019My name is Marion Pfitscher and I attended the Master in Business Management / Food & Wine: I currently work as Trade Marketing at Ethica Wines, a Miami-based company specializing in importing the best Italian wines worldwide.
I have always been a wine lover: having grown up in a family-run winery, I followed the passion of my family, immediately seizing the potential and versatility of the sector in terms of business. I lived on several occasions abroad, between the University in Austria and the Erasmus project in the Netherlands.
The academic path I chose, Tourism Business Studies, proposed a curriculum in English and German, with a specific focus on economics, marketing and event management in Alpine tourism. It was a very practical degree with many projects and company visits. This course also included a 6-month internship, which I had the opportunity to perform in New York at Mionetto USA, one of the largest Italian wine importers in the United States. Working simultaneously with the United States and Italy has allowed me to understand closely the dynamics of the world of sales abroad and how the marketing plan develops within multinational companies, as well as confirming my interest in the wine world and the will to turn my passion into a profession.
So, after completing my studies in Innsbruck in 2017, I decided to enroll in a Masters degree outside my country, to continue my strong international training. When I started to learn about the various training courses, I had no doubt. The Master in Business Management / Food & Wine of Bologna Business School was exactly what I needed to take the leap forward and pursue a career in the sector.
BBS immediately proved to be a positive experience in all aspects: among the strengths, I undoubtedly point out the opportunity to create a huge network through numerous meetings with professionals, as well as guest lectures and project work for relevant companies of the sector. To this I add the prestige of a Faculty composed of professionals capable both of teaching and transmitting knowledge and skills, as well as of supporting future Managers in an expanding sector.
The Master has greatly strengthened my education in the field, but above all it has offered me the tools to grow, both in my career and as a person. The path taken at BBS was an all-round experience: the people I met, the teachers I knew, the school and life in Bologna helped me to concentrate my efforts and to direct my approach in taking on new challenges.
During the Master I had the chance to meet an Alumna who had attended Bologna Business School a couple of years before, and who worked at Ethica Wines. I received an internship proposal as Trade Marketing Intern at their headquarters in Miami and after a month I decided to accept this new challenge and move. From March 2019 I work as a Digital Marketing Specialist at this wine importer in the USA, where I take care of the digital part of the company, supporting the management of media campaigns, collaborations with influencers and website content. I am also the reference person for the Canadian market and I organize guided tours throughout Italy: I feel really lucky to play a dynamic and versatile role, alongside an international team. Last April 2019 I returned to South Tyrol and continue to collaborate with a scattered team around the world: in the future I would like to continue my career in the wine sector in the Marketing and Sales department.
To a prospective BBS student I recommend taking advantage of every single possibility offered during the process to get to know professionals through guest lectures and projects: every day you can open many doors and the network that is created with teachers and classmates is an added value priceless.
Marion Pfitscher – Italy
Master in Business Management / Food & Wine – Year 2017/2018
