Some husbands and wives have a glass of wine at dinner or as a way to celebrate a special occasion. A husband-wife team from Greece is taking that to the next level and started The Wine God, the first Greek wine subscription box plan where one can have the unique and high-quality Greek wines delivered monthly to their doorstep- just in time for dinner or that special occasion.

Evee Anastasopoulou and Dimitris Athanasiadis are architects and former astronomers respectively came up the idea to start The Wine God after Anastasopoulou read “The Invisible Rift” (“To αόρατο ρήγμα”) by Aristos Doxiadis, a Greek economist. She says the book is about “the nature of the real Greek economy. Since the Greek economy’s competitiveness does not rely on heavy industry, nor low salaries or a vigorous supportive political environment, the book suggests a tailor-made possible way it could come out of the seemingly endless recession.” Her husband agrees saying the book talks about Greece needing to “stress its strengths to come out of the crisis.”

Dimitris Athanasiadis shows the book that his wife Evee Anastasopoulou read that sparked their interest in starting The Wine God

How can something sweet like a wine business come out of such a trying time in Greece such as the economic pressures?

Only a few ingredients are needed for a small flexible business to be a success per Doxiadis’ writings. Those include: almost zero starting capital focused solely on exports, selling abroad what Greece does best or is famous for and has unique or exceptional quality. Three industries are described as ideal candidates according to Anastasopoulou- the agricultural sector, tourism and high tech IT services. This could be achieved by the rise of e-commerce, the Greek lifestyle, health and nutrition trends and the lack of competition.

All of this created the perfect recipe for the success of The Wine God. Evee and Dimitris designed the club around exploring Greek vineyards and introducing those wines to the rest of the world. They feel that the wines they offer showcase a strong Greek product that’s perhaps somewhat unknown now but on the rise. More importantly, it shows to the rest of the world that Greece has something of value- and they feel their startup business can do its part to help invigorate the startup community in Greece.

How does The Wine God work?

“The idea is very simple at its core,” says Athanasiadis. “You visit the website and subscribe at the frequency of your choice. We send you the wines along with material and information to get to know more about the region in Greece where the wine was produced. The idea is that you are able to educate yourself more about wines in general.”

And that’s a fun part of the business that Anastasopoulou and Athanasiadis enjoy. Being wine enthusiasts themselves, they love exploring the incredible wines that Greece offers-and then passing that knowledge along to their subscribers in and outside of Greece.

FILE- Greek Wines. (Photo by TNH)

While many Greeks are cautious about starting entrepreneurial endeavors, the enthusiasm and dedication of this husband-wife team help create a positive synergy in look at the economic crisis.

Athanasiadis talks about how they stay motivated even in the midst of trying times and when most Greeks aren’t that enthusiastic about business opportunities.

“Keep an open mind. You don’t know when an opportunity will appear.”

And when that opportunity appears, it may just come in a wine bottle delivered to your front door from Greece.

*The Wine God only ships to the EU currently but is looking to expand in the US. For partnership opportunities or more information, email them at [email protected] or visit their website: https://www.thewinegod.com/ or on social media at https://facebook.com/thewinegod/ and http://twitter.com/jointhewinegod.