Entrepreneurial women’s networks: the case of D’Uva – Portugal wine girls

The purpose of this paper is to assess women winemakers’ motivations for and objectives in creating a formal, horizontal, and inter-organizational network in Portugal. To this end, an analysis was carried out of the practical case of a network of women wine producers from some of the main wine regions of Portugal (i.e. D’Uva – Portugal Wine Girls).

Qualitative data analysis was carried out of in-depth semi-structured interviews with seven wine producers and the network manager. The content analysis of interviews was done with QSR International’s NVivo Version 11 software.

The results support the conclusion that the D’Uva – Portugal Wine Girls network promotes the creativity and innovation fundamental to communicating unique features to consumers. These are narrated in a feminine, cohesive, and united voice and supported by a passion for winemaking. The network is open to adding other women producers, which could contribute to its growth and further sharing of knowledge, contacts, and experiences.

The findings provide a better understanding of the processes of internationalization and networking among women winemakers in Portugal.

The benefits of this network in terms of relationships were examined, showing that the stimulation of better performance and the effects of antecedents were important in the creation and formalization of the network.

This research sought to contribute to the literature on female entrepreneurship and, more specifically, networks of entrepreneurial women. The findings stress that, through the formalization of networks, women can gain more advantages, namely, sharing knowledge and experiences, increasing their level of internationalization, and expanding their networks.