Uncorking Success: Transformation at Virgin Wines

Transformation at Virgin Wines

Virgin Wines is an online wine retailer based in the UK stocking over 650 wines sourced from more than 40 trusted winemaking partners and suppliers around the world. The company was established in 2000 by Richard Branson’s Virgin Grouprmation at Virgin Wines.

The Challenge

Virgin Wines offers amazing products and an award winning WineBank club. Much work had already been done to invest in elevating the brand, however, to bring these to the customer, the execution of significant changes to the website and other marketing campaigns was a challenge.

Rachel Prew

How did Lean Tree make a difference?

At a pivotal point of transformation for the Virgin Wines Management team, Rachel Prew, Director at Lean Tree, was engaged to help establish and develop three highly effective product teams as a pilot, focused on brand, customer acquisition and retention. She integrated into the Virgin Wines environment, helping the teams adopt a product-centric, agile delivery model using Scrum as a framework and paving the way for the transformation from a siloed, departmental structure to a more agile way of working.

Working this way, provided the teams with a collaborative, cross-functional approach to e2e delivery of value, encouraging communication and removing blockers to progress quickly. By being embedded in the teams, Rachel was able to offer guidance and assistance in solving complex challenges from a position within the business, rather than being interpreted as an outside voice.

Utilising the experience of the consultants at Lean Tree, Rachel provided further value-add conversations to support the strategic thinking needed to set the teams up for long-term success after her time with them was completed.

“It is with the utmost enthusiasm that I provide this reference for Rachel Prew and the wider team from Lean Tree. Rachel joined us to help develop our Product Management ownership implementation, and her contribution was nothing short of exceptional.

Rachel’s skill set is truly outstanding, complemented by her incredible understanding of the challenges we faced. She displayed an extraordinary ability to empathise with and understand the needs of both the people and the organisation. Her wealth of experience across her discipline was evident in every interaction, but what truly set her apart was how effortlessly she applied her expertise to resolve complex challenges.

Thanks to Rachel’s leadership and insight, we achieved far more than we could have without her. She set us up for long-term success, establishing three highly effective product teams, supporting both the product owners and stakeholders with equal dedication. She brought a natural sense of leadership to our team, earning the respect and admiration of everyone she worked with.

Rachel excelled at identifying critical details and tackling challenges head-on, always with precision and poise. She was incredibly organised, ensuring everyone stayed aligned and on track. Her communication skills were exemplary, allowing her to convey ideas clearly, resolve issues effectively, and foster collaboration across teams.

What truly stood out was Rachel’s unwavering commitment to delivering value, alongside the remarkable partnership and support offered by the Lean Tree team. Rachel consistently went above and beyond her remit, offering support wherever she saw an opportunity to make a difference. Her ability to foster trust, deliver results, and inspire those around her makes her an asset to any organisation.

In addition, the wider team from Lean Tree have been fantastic. They provided a range of advice and insights throughout our engagement, helping to accelerate and drive meaningful change across the organisation. Their collective expertise and proactive approach significantly contributed to the success of our initiatives, ensuring we made measurable progress at every stage.

I have no hesitation in recommending Rachel and Lean Tree. They are consummate professionals, natural leaders, and partners you can trust in every aspect of their capabilities. Any organisation would be fortunate to have them on their team.”

– Danny Cooper, Chief Information Digital Officer, Virgin Wines

Thanks to the hard work of Rachel and Lean Tree, the Virgin Wines team have improved their turnaround of ‘shippable’ work by over 50% and are working rapidly towards their North Star of a full website transformation.

Can Lean Tree help you?

To find out more about the role that Lean Tree can play in your organisations’ transformation, get in touch.

Outcomes

3 Virgin Wines’ teams trained in a product-centric, agile delivery model using Scrum as a framework.

Shippable work from the pilot teams has increased by over 50%.

Pilot teams working rapidly toward their North Star of a full website transformation.

How can we help you?

Let’s have a chat.

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