Wine enthusiasts drinking their favourite bottle of wine are more concerned with what’s inside the bottle rather than what’s on the outside. But for most, the initial attraction must have started with the bottle standing out from the rest, the label catching the eye of the consumer.

Now comes Groote Post, a historic 18th century farm located in the Darling Hills on the Cape West Coast, with its premium, eye-catching labels. The Pentz family changed from dairy farming to wine farming in 2001 and have been reaping the fruits of their labour since.

Owner and proprietor, Nick Pentz, explains that his great-greatgrandfather founded the Union Dairy in Cape Town in 1904 and established dairy herds over time in Tokai, Philippi, and Darling.‘My father, Peter, continued this dairyman tradition for 40 years by processing and delivering his milk to the southern suburbs daily. I joined him as a fourth-generation farmer in 1992, and was proud when he received national recognition as Farmer of the Year in 1998,’ he states. ‘We changed focus three years later to concentrate solely on the production of world-class wine.’

Nick notes that family and heritage form an important part of the wine brand and they wanted it to be evident on the labels as well. ‘On all the wine bottles, you’ll find our historic bell tower that can still be seen on the farm. Groote Post has a rich history and after five generations of Pentz working on the farm, it plays an iconic role in our family.’

To help preserve these family traditions, it’s no wonder that Groote Post has trusted Cape Town’s Rotolabel, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary, as its label printing partner for the past two decades. ‘Rotolabel has guided and grown with us over the years,’ explains Nick.

Rotolabel’s sales executive, Grant Watson, reports that Groote Post even stuck with them when the company moved from wet glue to self-adhesive labels. ‘What makes this partnership memorable is the trust Groote Post, and especially Nick, has in us. We always give our best when Nick presents us with a new challenge.’

According to the Rotolabel team, although Groote Post’s labels may seem traditional, Nick likes to push the envelope to explore new ways of making them even better.

‘Through years of collaboration, you begin to understand what the customer needs, and you go above and beyond to meet those expectations,’ says Wicus Maritz, managing executive at Rotolabel. ‘Nick is passionate about what he wants and has always remained loyal and trusted us during each creative process.’

The other component of this successful relationship is Rotolabel’s long-standing partner ROTOCON, which helps the team to present labelling solutions to its customers via ROTOCONTROL finishing machines, an MPS flexo press and consumables.

Michael Aengenvoort, CEO of ROTOCON, comments that the company aims to support the local wine industry by providing the most appropriate printing technology solutions, as well as by giving back with initiatives such as sponsoring the 30 Under 30 Awards. Peter Pentz, communications manager at Groote Post, was among those honoured at this year’s awards.

‘Showing support is important to us and we want the industry to know that we aren’t just about our portfolio because bringing people together forms part of our DNA,’ comments Michael.

‘Our business relationship with ROTOCON goes back many years now, and started off with us purchasing rotary dies from them. Since then, they have proven to be a reliable partner, which is very important in this competitive market,’ comments Wicus.

Grant adds that the ROTOCON team has always been hands-on and shared the same philosophy that building good business relationships, based on communication and understanding, are the perfect recipe for long-term mutual success.

He also emphasises that Rotolabel prides itself on aiming only for high-quality products. ‘To achieve this, it’s important to have high-quality machinery and skilled production and sales teams. Additionally, honesty and integrity are very important to us and that’s why everything that we do is built on these qualities. In this market, it’s important to build a good reputation and uphold it. That’s why we’re proud to be associated with reputable brands such as ROTOCON and Groote Post.’

Nick agrees that Groote Post takes pride in its partnerships with Rotolabel and ROTOCON because they are founded on the values of trust, honesty, integrity, and quality. ‘Our relationship with Rotolabel is stronger than ever and we even joke that we have each other on speed dial. It’s amazing how such a big company can support a small company like ours.’

Creating labels that stand out isn’t an easy task. It takes value chain partners – the brand, label printer, and equipment supplier – to not only work together, but grow together and trust each other during the process.-mag

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