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Breaking Barriers in Wine with Stephanie Franklin of Fly Wines Club | Culture X Conversations Ep 1
09/09/2025
Breaking Barriers in Wine with Stephanie Franklin of Fly Wines Club | Culture X Conversations Ep 1
In this inaugural episode of Culture X Conversations, hosts Anuroop Kumar and Lionell Ball sit down with Stephanie Franklin, founder & CEO of Fly Wines Club — a woman-owned wine platform redefining how we experience wine. Stephanie shares her remarkable journey: leaving behind a 15-year career in advertising and tech, navigating personal loss, and leaping into an industry where less than 1% of leaders are minorities. Against the odds, she built Fly Wines Club, an importer and distributor that champions underrepresented winemakers and regions — from Turkish to Moroccan to local hidden gems like Gilroy, CA. This conversation dives into: Turning grief into purpose: the catalyst behind Fly Wines Club Breaking into the “gate-kept” wine industry as a Black woman founder Why inclusivity and cultural celebration are at the heart of Fly Wines The challenges of licensing, distribution, and scaling in an exclusive industry Building resilience, balance, and joy as a founder Fly Wines is more than wine. It’s a movement to make wine approachable, inclusive, and a celebration of global cultures. 🍷✨
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