Why buy from Donzella Wines? Because we are a family-run Italian wine merchant with over 30 years of experience sourcing authentic bottles directly from small producers across Italy. Our story began in a restaurant in 1992 and has grown into a trusted online wine business built on quality, relationships and honest pricing.
In 2002, we began selling wine off-sales directly from the restaurant. This was long before online shops and next-day couriers. There was no website, no checkout, no social media. Just customers who trusted Giovanni’s taste and kept coming back because they knew they were getting something special.
When Giovanni and Julie retired from the restaurant in 2020, just before COVID hit, wine had already become a core part of the business. In 2022, their son Nicholas took over day-to-day operations and brought Donzella Wines online.
So while the website may be new, the experience behind it goes back decades.
Learning Logistics the Hard Way
Moving wine from one place to another might sound simple. It isn’t. And Brexit certainly didn’t make it any easier.
Almost overnight, Nicholas had to become a logistics expert – learning how to import wine into the UK, manage customs paperwork, understand duties, and navigate regulations that seemed to change every five minutes. What used to be straightforward suddenly became a maze of forms, declarations and delays.
For Giovanni, who had been importing wine long before Brexit, it was another challenge to adapt to. Between them, they learned fast, made mistakes, fixed them, and kept pushing forward. It wasn’t glamorous, but it was necessary. Today, every bottle we import has passed through systems we built ourselves.
Family Debates Over Wine
Giovanni and Nicholas still regularly have what we like to call “constructive disagreements” about wine.
What should we try next?
Will customers love it?
Is this too bold?
Is this too safe?
Those conversations matter. It’s not about ego – it’s about getting it right. Giovanni brings decades of experience and instinct. Nicholas brings fresh perspective and what today’s customers are looking for. Somewhere in the middle is where the best wines are found.
From Garage to Warehouse
Our first “warehouse” was a single garage.
Boxes stacked everywhere.
Bending, lifting, packing by hand.
Constantly worrying about sending the wrong bottle.
How Giovanni managed without breaking his back is still a mystery.
When Nicholas took over, he completely transformed the system. He rebuilt the warehouse process from the ground up, introducing structured picking, better storage, clearer stock control and smarter packing methods. What was once chaos became organised, efficient and far less painful on the knees.
It wasn’t pretty.
But it worked.
Built the Hard Way
Nothing about Donzella Wines was handed to us.
We learned:
• Importing
• Customs
• Logistics
• Stock management
• Packing systems
• Online selling
All from scratch.
Every mistake made us better.
Every problem forced us to improve.
That’s why today, when your order arrives safely, it isn’t luck – it’s experience.
