B U I L T, N O T J U S T I M A G I N E D.
FROM VISION
TO EXECUTION
Strategic brand direction, operational leadership, and experiential architecture for premium wine & luxury brands.
Led by Jen Cortellini, The Finishing Table partners with founders and leadership teams to launch a new venture, shape one in progress, or renew one that already exists.
Because great ideas don't just need polish, they need a plan.
C O R E F O C U S A R E A S
The questions behind your premium brand.
What is it here to do?
Define a shared voice across story, experience, and delivery.
What should it feel like?
Design and map the experience from concept through completion.
How does it run day-to-day?
Establish the systems, workflows, and alignment to operate efficiently without the friction that stalls progress.
What takes it to the next stage?
Lead the transition from build through launch to scale, with continuity at every stage.
What amplifies this beyond your brand?
Develop and align strategic relationships that extend reach and impact.
What earns lasting loyalty?
Turn a single experience into an emotional connection worth returning to and worth talking about.
T H E P A R T N E R S H I P
We meet you where you are.
Start from a single milestone or go through the full journey from concept to scale.
Define
The Strategy
When to Engage
You have a high-level concept and are ready to map the path forward.
The Work
Clarifying the opportunity, aligning stakeholders, and establishing the strategic direction that guides every decision.
Build
The Foundation
When to Engage
The strategy is agreed upon, and you're ready to design the structure behind the experience.
The Work
Crafting the operating models, workflows, and partnerships required to move the concept forward and operate efficiently.
Execute
The Launch
When to Engage
The core systems are in place, and you're ready to bring the vision to market and drive results.
The Work
Expanding commercial reach, optimizing partnerships, and driving measurable growth.
You bring the vision. We’ll bring the structure, strategy, and follow-through.
F L E X I B L E E N G A G E M E N T M O D E L S
How to work together.
Monthly Retainer
Embedded Leadership
An ongoing partnership as an extension of your team, leading and executing at any stage.
Ongoing · Extension of your team
Fixed Fee
Project-Based
A defined initiative with a clear beginning and end, focused on a single objective and carried through to completion.
Defined scope · Single objective
T H E T H R O U G H L I N E
Confidence at every stage.
T R A C K R E C O R D
Nearly two decades building and scaling premium brands, platforms, and revenue programs across Wine Enthusiast Media, Brooklyn Sports & Entertainment, the Harvard Data Science Initiative, and founder-led ventures.
A P P R O A C H
Clear thinking. Direct communication. Full follow-through. Every partnership is shaped around what the work actually needs, not a fixed methodology.
P O I N T O F V I E W
Premium brands succeed when the experience and the infrastructure behind it are equally well-designed. Too often, they are treated as separate disciplines. The work here connects the two.
C O N T I N U I T Y
No handoffs. No translation layers. The same person who shapes the strategy leads and executes the work, while retaining accountability throughout.
S E L E C T E D E X P E R I E N C E
Strategy is only as good as what it becomes.
Harvard Data Science Initiative · Vine to Mind
Platform Strategy & Experiential Leadership
Guided Vine to Mind's evolution as a global platform, connecting its academic foundation with brand and digital strategy, partnerships and audience growth, while leading key operational and experiential initiatives, including the launch of Judgment of Davis.
Brooklyn Sports & Entertainment · Brooklyn Wine Club
New Venture Strategy & Build
Led the strategy and operational development of a new premium wine platform within a major sports and entertainment organization, working across internal teams and industry partners to bring the concept to market.
Wine Enthusiast Media · Wine Star Awards
Flagship Platform Evolution
Led the evolution of a flagship industry awards program, guiding cross-functional execution as the platform expanded beyond its original New York format.
Sona Hills · Paso Robles
Luxury Brand & Hospitality Development
Partnered with ownership from early concept through brand and hospitality development, helping shape the identity, guest experience, and long-term vision for a new luxury estate.
Wine Enthusiast Media · Importer Connection
Commercial & Operational Transformation
Directed the restructuring of an established B2B platform, working across commercial, product, and technology teams to strengthen its business model and build the infrastructure for scale.
Wine Enthusiast Media · Brand & Experience Ecosystem
Integrated Growth & Expansion
Developed live and digital extensions of established editorial franchises, connecting content with commercial strategy and experiential programming to engage audiences and brand partners. Drove greater connectivity across industry events and key markets, strengthening Wine Enthusiast's global presence and partner relationships.
From the Feed
Cellars to cities and everywhere in between.
T R U S T E D L E A D E R S H I P
The Embedded Partner
Jen partners with founders and leadership teams as an independent, embedded operator, bringing strategic brand direction, operational leadership, and the structure and follow-through required to carry ideas into execution.
The Ecosystem View: From Wine Media to Startups
Years leading cross-functional platforms at Wine Enthusiast Media shaped an integrated approach to strategy, commercial thinking and execution. Jen brings that same breadth to founder-led and early-stage businesses, with an entrepreneurial mindset and the agility to create structure where little may yet exist.
The Dual Engine: Precision & Instinct
A career that began in finance, logistics, and commodities laid a disciplined foundation in how organizations function and how value is created. That perspective later expanded into wine, hospitality, and experiential design, sharpening an instinct for how a premium business must feel, not just how it operates.
Vision sets the direction. Follow-through makes it real.
The Finishing Table is built for both.
BUILT, NOT JUST IMAGINED
Ideas create possibility.
Execution creates progress.
Whether shaping something new or strengthening what’s already in motion, The Finishing Table brings the strategy, structure, and follow-through to move ideas forward.
THE PATH FORWARD STARTS HERE.