Backer Update - coming soon!
over 3 years ago – Fri, Oct 02, 2020 at 11:09:50 AM

Backers - 

Just a quick update on timing.  We are on track for a timely delivery.  We ended up shipping via air instead of boat as originally planned, because we wanted to get everyone their Winebars as soon as possible.

We are waiting for an update from the shipper as to our exact landing date, and then will update everyone again.

In other news, check out the final design of our packaging for the V1.0 Winebars!

Thanks for your patience, and as always - happy sipping.  Can't wait for it to be happy shipping.

Dan and the Winebars Team

Our next update - delivery is in sight!
almost 4 years ago – Wed, Jul 22, 2020 at 12:27:26 PM

Dear Backers:

Time for another update - filled with lots of good news.

1. Manufacturing is moving along nicely now.  We ran into a few issues in the transition from prototyping (done entirely with CNC milling) to production.  Production uses aluminum extrusion to force heated aluminum through a die cut to match the long sides of the bars. There was some concern about the surface quality from extrusion and how well it would anodize compared to milled parts. The really good news is the first samples have come off the production line and so far so great - they look really nice and the surface quality appears to be fine.

• Our timeline is updated to September. We anticipate having our parts into Salem Metal’s facility in Massachusetts in early September, and after final finishing will be sending our little bars on their happy way to you a few weeks after!  We will update again on that timeline soon as we can narrow in on a ship date.

• And meanwhile we have lots going on behind the scenes. We’re deep into our Shopify implementation and hope to be live by the end of this month, so pre-orders can start for real from Winebars.com in early August. We’ve continued to shoot the most amazing photos - check out our Instagram feed here: instagram.com/getwinebars.  And we got good news from our attorneys that our patent was approved and should be official within a few short weeks.

So stay tuned for another update as soon as we have more info on the timeline. Needless to say we’re super excited to be close now and are eager to get Winebars into everyone’s hands, and fridges, and countertops, and cabinets, and patios, and where ever else you choose to put them.

As always, stay safe and enjoy a glass of distance wine with friends and family.

Dan and the Winebars team.

Update on our production schedule
almost 4 years ago – Tue, Jun 09, 2020 at 03:24:57 PM

Hi Backers -

Since we closed out the Kickstarter campaign on March 12, so much has happened. We've made a lot of progress, but it definitely is going slower then we anticipated.  Here are some highlights:

• We got our Kickstarter funds at the end of March, and then anxiously awaited a final round of prototypes from our supplier which arrived, with a slight delay, in mid-April.

1. We’ve placed the order for our tooling. This is the die that will be used with a process called aluminum extrusion to form the basic shape of the bars. Bars of stock aluminum are heated up and forced through what’s a 2-dimensional shape to give Winebars their distinctive lengthwise design. The tooling for the extrusion should be done in another week.
2. And once the tooling is done, we will finalize our production order!!! Needless to say, we’re super fired up about that. Our manufacturing partner, Salem Metal, is expecting about a 10 week lead time from there, so with a little luck that puts us into early to mid August.

Happily, our manufacturing partners are all up and running with rigorous safety standards to protect their workers.  So in total, the timing is slower than what we had hoped (so much for early June!), but given what’s going on around us, we’re happy to have a supply chain ready to go.

As we’re getting ready to deliver the first batch of Winebars, we’re still having fun.

1. We’ve been working on new colors and finishes. The glossy white versions are not yet for sale, but they are gorgeous!
2. And we’ve been busy writing and thinking about wine and entertaining. You can check out our continuing stream of beautiful photos of Winebars on Instagram @getwinebars.  And in only a few short months all of you will be sharing your own Winebars photos with us.

Hopefully, we can slowly return to a new normal, and we look forward to having some distance drinks soon with friends and family.

We'll have another update as soon as we finalize the production order.

Stay safe everyone, and cheers!

Dan and the Winebars Team

Backer Update: BackerKit surveys are coming!
about 4 years ago – Thu, Apr 02, 2020 at 04:25:51 PM

Hi everyone -

My apologies for the delay in sending this update. Due to circumstances beyond our control … well, you know the rest.

Our last update was the day after the campaign closed on March 12 - and the stunning reality of the global crisis we find ourselves in had not fully hit. Oh, how times have changed.

In the face of this crisis, what to do? As an entrepreneur and an optimist the choice is obvious: plow forward with an updated time frame and do our very best. It’s important for the global economy and it’s important for you, our backers, that we go produce some Winebars.

And so our next step is to place the order for our first production run with our partners in Massachusetts and China, who both are able to continue their operations. Our timeframe may stretch out from the June commitment we had planned, but based on what we know today, we are still hoping for a delivery in about 90 days.

And to do that we need your help.

Soon, you’ll receive an email from us with a special link to your BackerKit survey. It’s important to respond to your survey as quickly as possible because we need this information to place our production order.

You don’t need to create a BackerKit account to fill out your survey. When you receive the email with the survey, click the survey link to respond. Answer the questions about your color preferences, provide shipping information, and purchase add-on items if you like. You’ll receive the email very soon.

After you respond to your survey, you can go back later and change your responses at any time before we close the surveys and get our final counts.

If you need to review your information or pledge status, you can return to your survey by clicking the link in your survey email or requesting your survey link under "Lost your survey?" on our BackerKit project page at https://winebars.backerkit.com.

If you used your Facebook credentials to log in to your Kickstarter account, the BackerKit survey is sent to the email address you use for your Facebook account. If you have another email address that you prefer to use, please contact support at https://winebars.backerkit.com/faq.

In some sense, now that we’re stuck inside, the need for Winebars seems even more apparent.

Many thanks to all.  Stay safe and healthy!

Dan and the Winebars Team

Thank You + Next Steps
about 4 years ago – Fri, Mar 13, 2020 at 09:59:18 AM

Thank you for making Winebars a reality. A few things need to happen before we can get Winebars to you, to allow us to kick off production and fulfillment:

• First, Kickstarter will transfer over the funds raised so we have the money to produce the rewards. This process can take up to two weeks from the completion date of March 12.
• Second, we look forward to finding out your color selection and the address where you'd like us to ship them. We will be sending out a BackerKit survey to collect this information at about the same time that funds have been transferred, so expect to receive your email surveys around 3/26.

BackerKit is the company we’ve chosen to work with to help manage the order completion and fulfillment process.

We’ll give you a heads-up before we send the survey so that you can be on the watch for it. The invitation email will contain a link to your personal survey. You won’t need to create a BackerKit account to answer your survey. It is important to submit your responses as quickly as possible. Our ability to fulfill your order depends on receiving this information.

You can always message me directly and give me your information, but answering your survey will help us get your rewards out to you faster and will provide you access to upgrades like the Winebars Pouch for storage.

If you used your Facebook credentials to log in to your Kickstarter account, the BackerKit survey link is sent to the email address you use for your Facebook account. If you have another email address that you prefer to use, please contact me.

Again, thanks for all your support. Take care of each other.

Dan and the Winebars Team