Wine business performance benchmarking: a comparison of German and Ukrainian wineries

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate and compare the efficiency of wine making in Germany and Ukraine in order to find the controllable factors of wine business performance using benchmarking tools.

The models of data envelopment analysis and other benchmarking tools are used to analyse the efficiency of wineries in two countries. Returns to scale, scale efficiency, super-efficiency and some other indicators are examined. The research is based on the sample of 36 German and Ukrainian wineries.

The hypothesis of higher wine making relative efficiency in Germany was compared with Ukrainian wine making, then analytically and statistically verified. A relatively high average scale efficiency score indicates good potential (above 30 per cent) for efficiency growth, due to the optimisation of a scale of production and sales. Generally, wine making in Germany and Ukraine has increasing returns to scale. The high-efficient wine business cannot bring great losses. It was found that the most efficient combinations of size and legal form of business organisation for wine business are presented in Germany.

The research is limited by a single industry of only the two countries.

This study provides useful information for researchers, investors and policy makers, enabling them to understand the current state, basic problems, controllable factors and efficiency levels of wine making in Germany and Ukraine. It may be useful to wine producers in these countries for improving their business performance.

This is the first paper that compares wine business performance and discloses its factors for Germany and Ukraine.