Quini closes private equity funding to accelerate the development of its artificial intelligence-based wine recommendations engine

Quini, a Vancouver, Canada-based tech startup and a provider of sensory real-time data, analytics and technology solutions for the wine industry, today announced that it has closed an undisclosed amount of funding to advance its artificial intelligence development program and expand the company’s sales organization. The minority round was led by OKR Financial.

The OKR Financial investment was supported by a syndicate of private investors as well as the company’s co-founders who chose to increase their support for the company. The round included Convertible Debenture and equity placements. Further financial details have not been disclosed.

Founded in 2012, Quini develops and markets enterprise software and wine data solutions for the restaurant and wine industries. Quini also market the world’s first visual wine tasting and rating application. Its select projects are co-funded by CMF (Canada Media Fund), NRC (The National Research Council) through the IRAP program and Mitacs. Quini’s investor group includes OKR Financial as well as individual private investors. Quini is a Nielsen Connected Partner. In 2017 and 2018, Quini released its next generation web based app and QUINI API™ platform, as well as the enterprise wine program and customer engagement automation platform, QUINI SOMM™ respectively.

The solution revolutionized wine consumer engagement, sales support and staff training in the wine and hospitality sectors. In 2018, Quini also introduced QUINI DATA™, the industry’s first self-serve consumer sensory and attitudinal near real-time data and analytics solution, used by large and small wine producers and retailers to solve critical business questions and make more informed marketing and product decisions. The solution collapses the time and cost of consumer research, making data-driven decision making accessible to wine companies of virtually any size.

Funds raised from this round will enable Quini to accelerate the development of its artificial intelligence-based wine recommendations engine and expand its sales organization to support the wine industry’s growing interest in consumer sensory data to enable more informed decisions across business functions including marketing and brand management, logistics, product innovation, and wine making.

“This funding round will enable us to augment our artificial intelligence-based innovations around Quini’s proprietary consumer sensory data, and grow our sales organization, as interest for our solutions rises among some of the largest wine producers and retailers,” said Quini’s CEO, Roger Noujeim. “I welcome all our new investors to Quini, including OKR Financial, a true leader in funding solutions for technology companies. I am proud that they share our excitement for Quini’s vision and future.”

“Quini has made solid investments in its technology and ideas, and created a business model that forever changed how wine producers and retailers can obtain and access consumer sensory data,” said OKR Financial Managing Partner and co-founder, Jason Neale. “With our investment in Quini, we can help advance the wine industry’s ability to compete more effectively and innovate with wines that delight the critically important, digitally hardwired millennial and Gen Z consumer groups on whose shoulders the wine industry will grow for decades.”