Australian Vintage has entered into a strategic partnership with Burch Family Wines that will see it acquire international ownership of the iconic Western Australian brand MadFish. 

As part of the agreement, Australian Vintage will also become the exclusive distributor of Howard Park Wines in the UK, Ireland, Europe, and Canada. Burch Family Wines will retain brand rights and distribution for both MadFish and Howard Park within Australia.

MadFish is currently one of the fastest-growing Australian wine brands in the UK market. Australian Vintage said the partnership would help strengthen its premium offering in the UK, while also introducing a lighter wine style that complements its existing portfolio.

Alongside the acquisition, it will enter into a long-term sourcing and processing partnership with Burch Family Wines to ensure consistency, quality, and scalable growth for MadFish.

“MadFish is currently one of the top Australian wine brands in the UK market and growing, while Howard Park is a premium brand from the distinguished Margaret River region,” says CEO Tom Dusseldorp.

“These brands will complement Australian Vintage’s existing stable of award-winning labels, providing increased volume and value without increased overhead. Australian Vintage continues to focus on advancing shareholder value by accelerating capital-light growth through partnerships and innovations.”

This partnership is a strong example of how innovation in the wine industry, through collaboration, can unlock mutual value in uncertain times.

“MadFish began as a personal tribute to my coastal home—a love affair with place and wine—and has grown into something far greater than we ever expected. Partnering with Australian Vintage allows MadFish to scale internationally, while keeping the brand and its essence anchored in Western Australia and our focus on crafting high-quality wines,” said Burch Family Wines CEO Jeff Burch.

“Australian Vintage’s global customer relationships, distribution, bottling and network are world class and we are confident they can accelerate both MadFish and Howard Park’s presence across the globe.”

AVL works to arrest declining sales

The MadFish announcement comes as the company enters “the early stages of a turnaround to address both declining sales and negative cash outflows of the Group in recent years”.

The company has revised its financial forecast, projecting a $13 million cash outflow instead of breaking even as previously expected. It said the update reflects ongoing challenges in the wine industry, including global oversupply and falling demand.

Australian Vintage said it estimates fiscal 2026 will be a “transformational year” for the Group both in terms of turning declining sales into growth and generating free cash flow.

However, it anticipates ending the year with net debt of $76 million.

On the upside, Australian Vintage gave a pre-sales update on its innovative new Poco Vino brand, which will launch in the United Kingdom in July 2025 and Australia in October 2025.

Poco Vino wine is packaged in small 187ml bottles and stacked on the shelves horizontally.

The company said pre-sales for Poco Vino had already exceeded expectations to the extent that the Group has brought forward further investment in packaging for the brand.

At the FY2025 half year the company had predicted an $8 million nets sales contribution from Poco Vino, with that estimate
now been upgraded to “conservatively over $10 million” for FY26, through increased global demand.

Poco Vino has confirmed more than 4000 distribution points for launch with pipeline interest across Asia, Europe and through a partnership in the United States.

“Another added benefit of the brand and the ‘make where sold’ model is that it will reduce supply chain costs creating a sustainable global business model and deliver significant incremental margin for the company as the brand builds
throughout the plan,” the company said.

FY26 demand for the Group’s other brand innovation, is estimated to exceed its FY25 result by an additional 80,000 cases. Distribution and ranging is expanding across Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the United States and the UK.

Australian Vintage credited new CEO Tom Dusseldorp (above) with being the innovator behind Poco Vino and Lemsecco and the driving force behind the Groups commercial sales effort and growth outlook.