Gina Bianco – Executive Director
Primary Responsibilities
- Annual business plan development & execution, including staff management
- Partner with OWB Directors, regional associations, industry members and academic institutions
- Champion Oregon’s wine industry, and its positive impact, to global media as well as to policy influencers
- Alliance Partner Management (WA St. Wine Comm., CA Wine Institute, Dept. of Ag., Travel Oregon etc.)
- Long-range forecasting and org. capabilities assessments
Bio
Gina brings her collaborative, enterprising spirit and ability to grow highly functional, inclusive, innovative, resourceful, and inspired teams to the Oregon Wine Board. Starting at the helm of Rogue Valley Vintners (RVV) in 2020, her tenure began during the global pandemic and devastating wildfires which she helped Southern Oregon wineries navigate through. Also, during her 3 ½ years at RVV, Bianco worked closely with the OWB Board and members of the wine industry to listen to their needs and challenges and build consensus and unity. Bianco came to Oregon armed with two decades of healthcare management, and her own consultancy where she successfully applied creative problem-solving and strong relationship-building.
Sally Crawford – Chief Financial Officer
Primary Responsibilities
- Accounting and Financial Reporting
- State Government Reporting
- Human Resources
- Research Grant Administration
- International Grant Administration
Bio
Sally joined the OWB in May 2023. She is a hands-on, cross-functional leader who enjoys building relationships and solving problems. Sally’s early career focused on specialty ingredient distribution in food, nutraceuticals, and personal care, including domestic and international sales, marketing, and business development. She pivoted in her career and has recently led finance, HR, and business operations at two software startups.
Sally holds a Master of Science in Finance from Portland State University and a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from Purdue University. Based in Portland, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends, traveling, and taking long walks.
Katie von Bargen – Director of Communications
Primary Responsibilities
- Provide focused content that is consistent with OWB’s mission and strategic plan
- Build relationships and maintain contact with key media across all platforms
- Coordinate media outreach efforts with Oregon’s wineries and vineyards as well as external partners including Travel Oregon, the Washington State Wine Commission, and Oregon’s regional wine associations
- Host key journalist visits, manage itineraries and media tastings, and support wine reviewer visits
- Track media coverage and provide statewide and regional reports
- Regularly assess the Oregon wine industry’s capacity for engaging successfully with media and provide industry guidance and training as needed
Bio
Katie brings 14 years of wine industry experience to the Oregon Wine Board. A Seattle area native, Katie earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication from Washington State University and worked in the education and engineering industries before beginning her career in the wine industry with the Washington State Wine Commission (WSWC) in Seattle. While at the WSWC, she held a Communications and Marketing Manager role and managed local, national and international trade and consumer events as well as industry relations and outreach.
Katie relocated to the Walla Walla Valley in 2013 and during her 11 years in the valley she has held communications, marketing and national sales roles with several local family-owned wineries, as well as a Pacific Northwest brand management role for a large national supplier. In addition, she earned her CSW certification in 2017 and served on the Board of Directors for the Walla Walla Valley Wine Alliance from 2020-2024.
In her free time, Katie enjoys running, traveling, and spending time with her family and friends.
Carissa Cook – Marketing and Insights Director
Primary Responsibilities
- Set strategy, direction and oversee the execution of marketing plans in alignment with the OWB strategic plan.
- Define and gather insights that drive marketing decisions as well as establish key performance indicators for all OWB programs.
- Identify trends in grape growing, winemaking, and consumer patterns, habits, and attitudes.
- Work in collaboration with Marketing Committee co-chairs and members to develop marketing strategies, tactics and quantifiable performance indicators to measure success.
- Support international marketing activities in collaboration with the International Marketing and Export Committee to promote and grow the Oregon Wine brand internationally.
- Collaborate in partnership with state organizations, such as Travel Oregon as well as regional tourism and AVA associations, to leverage resources in support of OWB’s brand messaging.
Bio
Carissa grew up in the wine and hospitality industry. Her family owned a wine bar and fine dining restaurant for over 40 years. Professionally, Carissa has 15 years of wine industry experience focused on brand storytelling, marketing and business strategy. She has a uniquely diverse background across all sides of the wine industry having worked for suppliers, distributors and as a buyer, as well as on both the wholesale and direct-to-consumer sides of the business. Most recently, Carissa led the development efforts for one of Oregon’s largest wineries, successfully overseeing the opening of four new tasting rooms. Prior to that, she managed trade marketing for the world’s largest wine supplier and owned a restaurant which she sold in 2019.
Carissa earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism with an emphasis in Advertising from the University of Nevada, Reno. Her love of Oregon Pinot Noir inspired her to move to Oregon and she immediately fell in love with the Pacific Northwest. When she’s not working, Carissa likes spending time with her family and friends, hiking, cooking, going out to dinner and enjoying a glass of Oregon wine.
Stacey Kohler – Executive Assistant
Primary Responsibilities
- Board liaison
- Manage Board meetings
- Co-manage workflow for the Executive Director
- Office Administration
- Industry Awards coordinator
Bio
Stacey joined the OWB in October 2017. Her experience working as an Executive Assistant includes both the public and private sectors.
Stacey is a native Oregonian and graduated from Portland State University with a B.S. in Psychology. She likes to garden and cook for her family.
Jess Willey – Research and Education Director
Primary Responsibilities
- Set strategy, direction and oversee the execution of research and education programs that align with the OWB strategic plan.
- Work with the Research Committee to prioritize research topics for annual funding and coordinate the evaluation and selection of successful research proposals.
- Track the progress of funded research projects and reporting; and create opportunities to present research findings and resulting impact/tactics/take-aways for the industry.
- Convene the Education Committee and subcommittees to develop curriculum for the annual Oregon Wine Symposium in the areas of enology, viticulture, sales/marketing, and executive/leadership.
- Oversee all OWB-funded research projects, including the Vineyard and Winery Census, Economic Impact Study, Wine Tourism Study, and Salary Survey.
- Engage with other organizations, such as Northwest Center for Small Fruit Research (NCSFR) and Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) as well as regional AVA associations, to leverage resources in support of timely research findings and education programs.
Bio
Margaret Bray – Key Consultant – International Marketing & Export
Primary Responsibilities
- Plan, facilitate and coordinate all trade and consumer marketing events both abroad and inbound as designated by OWB’s International Marketing & Export Committee (IMEC).
- Primary liaison for International Marketing & Export Committee, Oregon wineries, in market contractors and US partners including Northwest Wine Coalition, Washington State Wine Commission, California Wine Institute and NY Wine.
- Work to identify viable additional export markets and present to the International Marketing & Export Committee for consideration.
Bio
Margaret was born and raised in Portland, Oregon but has been traveling and living abroad since she graduated from university. Her interest in wine started when she was living in Tuscany and working in tourism there. After working in aviation for five years where she traveled the world tasting wines along the way, she returned to Portland and began working at the Oregon Wine Board. During her time there she managed education and marketing efforts, both domestically and internationally. However, Italy was calling her back, so she moved to Florence where she started her formal wine studies while managing the international marketing program for OWB. Today she splits her time between Oregon, Italy and traveling the world promoting Oregon wines. She has consulted for many Italian wineries and has assisted in the international marketing strategy for Washington State Wines while working closely with associations for both California and NY. In her 13th year as an international wine marketing consultant, she has a vast network of wine trade around the globe and is interested in working with other regions to develop their international presence.
Bree Stock MW – Key Consultant – Educational Curriculum
Primary Responsibilities
- Oregon Wine Symposium content development and Education Committee admin
- Community Benchmark & WISE Academy grant partnership
- Oregon Wine Month education webinars
- Global training & masterclass management
- Oregon Wine Profit Planner maintenance and promotion
- Northwest Wine Certification & “Learn Oregon” development and delivery
- Industry education workshops
Bio
Bree, a Master of Wine specializing in wine education development, joined the Oregon Wine Board in April 2017. An independent global wine industry management consultant since 2008 specializing in education program development and sensory training. A certified WSET educator since 2008 and Master of Wine since 2016, she lectures across all levels of the WSET certification and Institute of Masters of Wine global seminars. Developer of the Oregon Wine Expert Certification, and NorthWest Wine Specialist Certification for the NorthWest Wine Coalition delivered in major Asia and Nordic markets. She regularly produces and presents wine education programs for industry and trade organizations, TEXSOM, Institute of Masters of Wine, Wine From The Edge, California Wine Institute, Napa Valley, Sonoma Vintners, and WA wine.
