Wine Service Cooperative Moves Napa Valley Warehousing to Yandell Amid Market Challenges

Wine Service Cooperative has transferred its remaining storage, fulfillment and transportation operations to Yandell Companies, adding another outside provider as Napa Valley wineries contend with weaker sales.

The partnership took effect Nov. 2. The co-op’s roughly 60 member wineries and other clients can use Yandell’s logistics network, while Wine Service Cooperative shifts toward negotiating services and pricing on members’ behalf. The cooperative remains member-owned, and wineries retain their ownership interests.

Yandell, based in Benicia, now operates the co-op’s three warehouses in American Canyon, Napa and St. Helena. Co-op president Steve Tamburelli said about 85% of employees were offered jobs with Yandell and accepted.

The move follows Wine Service Cooperative’s decision last year to outsource direct-to-consumer fulfillment to Napa-based Wineshipping. That arrangement continues. The co-op’s warehouse footprint includes leased sites on Green Island Road in American Canyon, Harlow Court in Napa and Dowdell Lane in St. Helena.

Yandell’s expanded services include temperature-controlled case storage, regional deliveries, bulk-wine tanker transportation, storage for bottles and packaging materials, and bottling-related services. Its Yes! Logistics division provides broader freight coverage. The companies use the same technology platform, allowing co-op members to keep accessing inventory through familiar systems.

The partnership also builds on Yandell’s acquisitions of Santa Rosa-based Eagle Transportation and Redwood Empire Wine Storage in 2024. Eagle is now handling bulk-wine transport for the cooperative.

Yandell operates nine buildings totaling more than 1 million square feet of warehouse space, employs more than 135 people and has access to about 100 truck tractors and more than 300 trailers, according to company executive Vitek. Wine remains its main market, though the company is also handling more food, beverages and ready-to-drink products, as well as just-in-time logistics for an unnamed electric-vehicle manufacturer.

For the cooperative, the agreements with Yandell and Wineshipping mark a shift from directly providing every service to using the collective buying power of its members. Tamburelli said the co-op is considering group programs such as stock-throughput insurance, marketing, regulatory-compliance support, direct-to-consumer consulting and sales services. No launch dates or prices have been announced.

More background: Wine Service Cooperative’s earlier fulfillment transition and Yandell’s 2024 acquisitions.

About the Author: Chris Lehoux

Meet Chris Lehoux, an experienced wine connoisseur and dedicated blogger with a deep passion for all things wine-related. With years of expertise in the industry, Chris shares insightful wine reviews, valuable wine tasting tips, expert pairing advice, and captivating tales of vineyard visits. Join Chris on a journey through the world of wine, where every sip is an adventure waiting to be savored!