What the Wine Industry Was Missing—Until Now | Ep 234 with LaToya Jordan and Brianna Shelko Founders of Marble Wines

Summary

Founder’s Story: What the Wine Industry Was Missing—Until Now | Episode 234

Hosts: IBH Media
Guests: LaToya Jordan and Brianna Shelko, Co-Founders of Marble Wines
Release Date: June 20, 2025

---

Introduction

In Episode 234 of Founder’s Story, hosted by IBH Media, listeners are introduced to LaToya Jordan and Brianna Shelko, the dynamic co-founders of Marble Wines. The episode delves into their journey of building a wine brand that not only stands out in a saturated market but also fosters community and representation for women in the industry.

---

Genesis of Marble Wines

Host's Inquiry:
The episode kicks off with the host expressing enthusiasm for delving into the origins of Marble Wines, particularly intrigued by their expansion into New York.

LaToya's Backstory ([00:31]):
LaToya shares her initial foray into the wine industry, which began with assisting others in launching their wine labels. However, she found herself with minimal returns despite gaining valuable knowledge and contacts. This experience ignited her desire to create something of her own, leading her to collaborate with Brianna.

Brianna's Collaboration ([01:15]):
Brianna elaborates on her longstanding professional relationship with LaToya, stemming from her time owning a social media agency where LaToya was a client. Their seamless rapport and mutual trust made the transition to co-founding Marble Wines a natural and exciting step for Brianna.

---

Transitioning to the Wine Industry

Host's Curiosity ([01:42]):
The conversation shifts to how LaToya and Brianna transitioned from their previous careers into the wine industry, highlighting challenges and adaptations.

LaToya on Industry Dynamics ([01:59]):
LaToya describes the wine industry as a "slow grind," emphasizing the patience required to introduce a new product to the market. She enjoys the social aspects of the business and mentions leveraging third-party partnerships to handle regulatory compliance, allowing them to focus on growth and community-building.

---

Navigating Challenges and Innovations

Addressing Distribution Hurdles ([02:59]):
LaToya identifies distribution as the primary challenge, noting that distributors often act as gatekeepers in the marketplace. This realization necessitated a strategic approach to navigate the complex distribution landscape.

Creating a Transitional Wine ([02:59]):
To cater to consumers hesitant about red wine, Marble Wines developed a "transitional wine"—a red blend designed to appeal to those who typically avoid red wines. This innovation aims to broaden customers' palates and introduce them to the versatility of red wine.

Brianna on Representation ([04:01]):
Brianna adds that through focus groups, they discovered a lack of female representation in existing wine brands. This insight became a cornerstone of Marble Wines’ mission to create a brand that women can relate to and feel represented by.

---

Fostering Community and Representation

Creating a Safe Space for Women ([04:52]):
The host probes deeper into how Marble Wines is building a community for women beyond just providing wine.

LaToya on Visual Representation ([04:52]):
LaToya explains that the label features an artistic drawing of a woman with gold metallic sunglasses, allowing each woman to see a reflection of herself in the bottle. This creative approach enhances personal connection and representation.

Hosting Inclusive Events ([04:52]):
LaToya recounts hosting their first Galentine’s Day event, bringing together women from diverse backgrounds to foster conversations about careers, families, and friendships. These events are designed to empower women and build a supportive community around the Marble Wines brand.

---

Marketing Strategies and Target Audience

Shifting Marketing Focus ([06:05]):
The host is impressed by Marble Wines' unique representation strategy and inquires about their marketing approach, especially in contrast to traditionally male-focused wine brands.

Brianna on Social Media Engagement ([06:35]):
Brianna shares that their social media primarily engages women, many with entrepreneurial or culinary backgrounds. They are exploring both online and in-person avenues to connect with their target audience, recognizing the importance of experiential marketing in conveying the quality of their wine.

LaToya on Brand Diversity ([07:55]):
LaToya highlights the unique brand story of two women from different generations and ethnic backgrounds collaborating to create Marble Wines. This diversity resonates with a broader female audience, demonstrating that representation comes in many forms and fostering inclusivity.

---

Expansion into New York

Ambitious Growth Plans ([09:21]):
The host praises Marble Wines as potentially the fastest-growing wine company in the U.S. and inquires about their current activities in New York.

LaToya on New York Distribution ([09:34]):
LaToya reveals that Marble Wines has secured distribution in two Brooklyn retail stores: Happy Cork and Bed Vine. She announces upcoming tasting events at both locations, inviting the community to engage with their brand firsthand.

Engaging the Community ([10:10]):
Both LaToya and Brianna encourage listeners to connect via social media platforms and attend their free tasting events to experience Marble Wines' offerings and community-driven initiatives.

---

Conclusion

The episode wraps up with the host expressing excitement about Marble Wines' trajectory and anticipating future successes. LaToya and Brianna leave the conversation by inviting the audience to participate in their upcoming events and to follow their journey both online and in the heart of New York.

Notable Quotes:

• LaToya Jordan ([02:59]): “We encounter people who say, you know, I don't drink red wine, or I don't like red wine. Our red blend is a transitional wine that can open your palate to new experiences.”

• Brianna Shelko ([04:01]): “Women felt like they were not represented in the brands. That was a cornerstone we really wanted to conquer while we were in business.”

• LaToya Jordan ([07:55]): “When we go out to events, we meet different women and connect because they see two very different women working together and having fun together. That's what wine should be—a social experience.”

---

Connect with Marble Wines:

• Website: www.marblewines.com
• Instagram: @MarbleWines

Join Marble Wines at their upcoming events in Brooklyn and be part of a community where wine meets representation and empowerment.

Transcript

[Host]

Hey, everyone. Welcome back to founders story. We always enjoy having two guests. And I'm excited because I really like drinking wine. I like to understand about how wine and community are coming together. And that's why we have these two amazing co founders. We have Latoya and Briana, the co founders of Marble Wines. And I can't wait to hear about your expansion now into New York. But if you both can give me a little download of what is the history of why you started this company?

[Latoya]

Well, we started Marble after I had an experience trying to assist somebody else with getting their wine label off the ground. And so ultimately I had acquired all of this knowledge, all of these contacts, and I had done all of this work. And at the end of it, I really didn't have much to show for except for like a couple of checks that I spent really quickly. And so we decided that, you know, we wanted to do something on our own. Right. I wanted to be able to take that information and utilize it and do it kind of a way that I wanted to do it. And when I approached Brianna about it, she was 100% on board with it and immediately wanted to be in. Yeah.

[Briana]

Latoya and I have worked together historically as well. Back when I owned a social media agency, she was a client for a couple years on and off, and we would work on really fun projects together. And every time we were on the phone with each other just felt like old girlfriends just yapping. We almost never talked about what we were supposed to be talking about. And so it was a good fit from the beginning. So when Latoya approached me about it, it was a no brainer for me. It was great.

[Host]

So how is it going from your past lives now, your past careers, to jumping in this together and going into the wine industry, which I know, Latoya, you said you had some experience helping somebody else, but now that you're doing it for yourself, how has it been?

[Latoya]

It's been great. It's been a lot of fun. The wine industry is. It's a slow grind. Right. It takes a minute to break a product into the market. But being able to, like, go out, I tell people all the time I have, like, the best weekend job because I get to drink and socialize and. And those are two things I'm really good at. We also, you know, we partner with some other third parties that assist us with compliance and all of those types of things, so we don't necessarily get fully ingrained in the minutiae of all of the regulatory things that we need to maintain our license as importers and wholesalers. But it's been great. We've enjoyed it, you know, a thousand percent.

[Host]

Was there something that you realized about the wine industry now that you've been getting, you know, you've been getting into the wine industry, and you've been talking to your customers or consumers that, you know, future consumers? Is there something that you're finding out that you didn't think about before?

[Latoya]

So the biggest challenge that we've had has been around distribution. We did not understand that distributors can be a gatekeeper to the marketplace. So we've had to really try to strongly navigate that space. Space. And then I would think the other thing that we kind of learned is that it's. Wine is such a subjective experience, right? We encounter people. We. Our first blend that's on the market is a red blend, and we encounter people who say, you know, oh, I don't drink red wine, or I don't like red wine. And we've done something very unique with our particular red blend that when we introduce it to customers who don't typically drink red wine, they actually really like it and think that it is a red wine that they can drink. So we actually call this a transitional wine. So if you only drink wine, or if you think you don't like red, or you only like sweet red, this is a good product to transition you and kind of open your palette in your mind to other things that you might like.

[Briana]

And to add on to that, too, you know, something Latoya and I figured out just a little bit along the way is that women felt like they were not represented in the brands. So we. They'd be shopping in the store and, you know, there's your favorite brands, there's a seller, Rosas, and, you know, stuff like that. But when we were doing our focus groups, it was like, I don't feel represented in a wine brand yet. You know what I mean? So that was a. That was another cornerstone that we really wanted to conquer while we were in business.

[Host]

I'm curious if you can dive more about the. Like you're saying, being able to feel represented as a woman in the wine industry and at the same time, building community for people to come together and a safe space for women, not just, you know, to drink wine, but also to network and, you know, create friendships. How has that been.

[Latoya]

That's been a great journey for us as well. We really started by fight by adding in the representation with the label itself. There's a woman on the bottle that really doesn't necessarily have any race at all. It's just, you know, an artistic drawing of a woman on the bottle. But where the representation comes in is that the sunglasses are gold metallic and they're reflective. So every woman who actually holds the bottle will get to see a little bit of their reflection on the label. So that was just a unique way that we were able to try to bring in the representation that women, you know, really said they wanted. And then we connect with women just through the events that we do. We hosted our first, we joined a lot of other events, but we hosted our first event this year. We did a Galentine's Day. So we got about 12 to 15, you know, women from different professions, different walks of life out to dinner. We served marble wine. We had conversation about careers, families, love, all of the things. And it was a really great experience.

[Host]

I really like that you're saying it's almost like they can see themselves in the wine. That's what a genius way to come up. When you, when you think about the marketing of this, are you having to go about it differently? Because maybe many brands are looking at more male focused customers that they are marketing to. When you see a huge category of women, maybe even more women drink wine, I don't know how, if you had to change your marketing to make sure you appeal to that, that customer.

[Briana]

For us, from a, at least a, per a social media perspective, it's been interesting to see who's engaging with the brands. Almost all of them are women and almost all of them have some kind of form of entrepreneurial and or baking background, chef background, which makes sense, right? Culinary arts background. So we've been trying to figure out the best places to meet them both in person, you know, foot traffic, but also online. And that's been a little bit of a challenge just because a lot of the culinary experiences are done in person. You know, you go to a restaurant, you. And that's where latoya has really taken the bull by the horns and, and she went straight to New York and got us distribution in New York. And we're going to start there to. For that foot, that foot traffic experience where we're in those, those retail stores. So that way maybe more. There's more affluence in the city and not just online, but it is, it's hard to explain how something tastes and how something, how wonderful something is just from an online experience. So that's why, you know, the distribution is so important when it comes to wine too. But it's, that's the only Challenging part is trying to translate just how wonderful and velvety and fruit forward this wine is without it being an in person experience.

[Latoya]

Yeah. So like Briana said, we got into the New York market and I think for us, I think where the story is different is that you have two women who are so different from one another working together to bring this product to other women. Right. Um, you know, there's obvious differences that we have, but we also, there's an age gap between Brianna and myself. I'm 43, almost about to be 44, and Brianna is in her early 30s. And so we have an age gap. There's a generational gap. There's, you know, a gap from a ethnicity, you know, perspective. And so that in itself is just a unique story that you don't see every day, particularly in the line space. And so when we go out into these, you know, events, we get to meet with all of these different women. And it's not just, oh, it's a black brand or it's just a brand or it's, you know, it really connects with women because they get to see two different, different, very different women working together, having fun together. Our bins are always fun. Like, we're going to make sure that they're always fun, you know, laughing and celebrating and drinking wine together. And that's what it's supposed to be. Wine is a social experience.

[Host]

Well, I see Marble Wines as being, you know, the fastest growing wine company, maybe the most successful wine company in history in the U.S. i, I could see it has an incredible potential here. Can you talk about what's happening in New York?

[Latoya]

Sure. So we got distribution started this year in New York. We are in two retail stores right now in Brooklyn and that's Happy Cork and that is also Bed Vine. And so we were there in March doing events. And I will actually be back this weekend on Friday at Happy Cork from six to eight doing a tasting. And I will be in Bed vine on the 21st from 6 to 8pm doing a tasting.

[Host]

Well, this is very exciting. So people want to get in touch with you. They want to find out how they can attend. They also want to know more about the brand as well. How can they do so?

[Latoya]

Social media. We have the, the flyers and the dates, the times, the locations, the addresses to those places. They're free events. So you can pop in anytime between 6 to 8, come say hello and.

[Briana]

Of course try to on Instagram. We're at Marble Wines and www.marblewines.com and you can, you can follow us for more information on all of future events.

[Host]

Well, I'm very excited. I can't wait to for you to come back in a year, tell us how it's going then. I'm sure it's going to be just incredible. Really love what you're doing. And I can't wait to hear more Latoya and Brianna from Marble Wines. I hope everyone checks it out and then goes to your event in New York. And then it sounds like they can buy it from New York after that. So really excited. And thank you for joining us today.

[Latoya]

Thanks for having us.