What Dream Big Darling does

Dream Big Darling is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization (EIN 82-5420248) founded in 2018 by Amanda Wittstrom Higgins and headquartered in Cambria, California. It develops early-career women in the U.S. wine and spirits industry through a portfolio of interconnected programs: FLOurish, a six-month personalized coaching and scholarship series co-created with The Millinger Group (valued at ~$6,500 per recipient); Fresh Voices, a journalistic publishing platform run in partnership with The Somm Journal and The Tasting Panel; multi-day in-person Retreats hosted primarily on California's Central Coast; the Dreamer Exploration Summit; the Hard Skill Training Series; and named scholarships including the Lyric and Cup of Jo awards. Its stated mission is to inspire, inform, connect, and empower the next generation of women leaders in beverage alcohol by combining education, mentorship, community, and access to opportunities.

Operationally, the organization runs on a standard low-cost web stack: a Squarespace-hosted website that serves as the primary program, application, and donation portal; Zoom for the virtual FLOurish coaching and Hard Skill Training sessions; HiringThing for scholarship applications; and Eventbrite for paid event ticketing (e.g., the Dreamer Summit at $50-$100, the Paso Robles Micro-Retreat at $150). It does not operate a mobile app or proprietary software platform.

Dream Big Darling has no fee-bearing core programs and does not generate conventional revenue from product sales or services. Its funding mix comprises charitable donations from individuals, corporate grants and sponsorships (notably a $340,000 six-year commitment from Mast-Jägermeister US for FLOurish, and recurring annual contributions from Ancient Peaks Winery's One Stone wine program of $44,000 in 2023), and ticketed fundraising events such as the Dream Big Dinner, Auction & Concert (the 2018 inaugural event raised over $100,000). Go-to-market is community-led: the organization reaches new participants through Instagram, its email newsletter, a national Hard Skill Training webinar series, alumni referrals, and an advisory bench of Master Sommeliers and wine-and-spirits executives.

Name

Dream Big Darling

Legal name

Dream Big Darling

Website

https://dreambigdarling.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Dream Big Darling is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that empowers early-career women in the U.S. wine and spirits industry through mentorship, scholarships, publishing, and retreats, anchored by its FLOurish coaching program, Fresh Voices media platform, and Central Coast retreats.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Workforce Development and Mentorship Services

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Educational Support Services (6117)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Education Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

Scholarship & Fellowship Foundations and Trusts (EDADAHAC)

Keywords

• Women's professional development
• Wine industry mentorship
• Spirits industry education
• Nonprofit community programs
• Career coaching services

Headquarters

HQ city

Templeton

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Fundraising: The organization relies primarily on charitable donations from individuals and corporate sponsors to fund its programs, scholarships, and operations. The website features a dedicated donation page for supporters to contribute.
2. Event Revenue: Revenue generated from ticketed events including the Dreamer Summit ($50 for emerging professionals, $100 for guests), auctions, and dinners. The inaugural 2018 Dream Big Dinner raised over $100,000.
3. Third-Party Grants and Corporate Sponsorship: Major multi-year grants from corporate partners such as Mast-Jägermeister US ($340,000 over six years for FLOurish scholarship) and ongoing donations from Ancient Peaks Winery's One Stone wine line.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Dream Big Darling is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that develops emerging women professionals in the wine and spirits industry through a portfolio of mentorship, education, publishing, and retreat programs. Its core offerings include the FLOurish six-month personalized coaching scholarship, the Fresh Voices journalistic publishing platform, annual multi-day in-person retreats and the Dreamer Exploration Summit, the Hard Skill Training Series, and named scholarships (Lyric and Cup of Jo). Programs are delivered to individual participants free or at nominal cost, funded by donations, corporate grants and event revenue.

Product overview

Dream Big Darling is a non-profit organization (501c3) that operates as a unified community platform offering multiple interconnected programs for emerging women leaders in the wine and spirits industry. The core offerings include Fresh Voices (a publishing platform enabling members to be featured in The Somm Journal and Tasting Panel magazines), FLOurish (a six-month personalized coaching and scholarship program with The Millinger Group), and Retreat programs (multi-day immersive experiences combining education, networking, and professional development). Additional offerings include the Dreamer Exploration Summit, Hard Skill Training Series, and scholarship programs (Lyric Scholarship and Cup of Jo Scholarship). The organization also maintains brand assets including its official anthem by Jade Jackson. All programs share a common ethos of providing real-life experience, mentorship, and community for early-career women in the beverage industry.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• FLOurish: A personalized professional coaching series and scholarship program for emerging women leaders in wine and spirits, featuring one-on-one career sessions with The Millinger Group and CliftonStrengths assessments.
• Fresh Voices
• One Stone

Products and services

• FLOurish Mentoring Scholarship A six-month personalized professional coaching series and scholarship for emerging women leaders in wine and spirits, featuring one-on-one career sessions with The Millinger Group, Caliper Assessment, 'Insights into Actions' coaching, peer mentoring and group networking. Valued at $6,500 per participant; offered free to selected recipients.
• Fresh Voices Media Platform A journalistic publishing platform, in partnership with The Somm Journal and Tasting Panel magazines, that enables selected Dream Big Darling community members to work with editorial teams to create articles and be published in national trade publications covering wine and spirits.
• Dream Big Darling Retreat Multi-day virtual and in-person retreats offering rich environments for professional development through keynote speeches, workshops, networking, guided multi-sensory experiences, nature activities, and connections with industry executives. Features intimate group settings of 20-30 attendees for meaningful relationship building.
• Dreamer Exploration Summit Professional summit featuring personal and business development sessions, tastings, networking, and industry insights including sessions such as 'Telling Your Best Story,' 'Bringing Your Dreams to Life' and 'THE FOUR OUNCE POUR,' concluding with a Sip & Mingle reception.
• Paso Robles Micro-Retreat 48-hour intensive leadership immersion experience in the Central Coast focused on viticulture, winemaking, hospitality innovation, and executive coaching. Valued at $2,000 per person and offered for a $150 registration fee.
• Hard Skill Training Series National training series providing tactical business skills for career advancement in wine and spirits, with complimentary sessions covering topics including change navigation, team intelligence multiplication, financial statement analysis, organizational clarity, active listening, and wholesale distribution strategy.
• Lyric Scholarship Scholarship honoring founding member Melodee Crank, awarding up to three $1,000 scholarships annually to women in the wine and spirits industry facing extreme medical circumstances.
• Cup of Jo Scholarship Scholarship honoring Jo Kennedy, awarding up to three $1,000 scholarships annually to women in the wine and spirits industry who need financial assistance for further education.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 100 attendees at inaugural Dreamer Summit in January 2024
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and flagship.

• Hope Family WinescoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2024Provided generous travel and accommodations for 21 scholarship winners attending the January 2024 Dreamer Summit & Exploration Tour. Stasi Seay, Director of Vineyards, serves as an advisor to Dream Big Darling.
• Vina Robles Production FacilityminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2024Host venue for the Dreamer Exploration Summit Day One sessions in January 2024.
• Paso Robles Wine Country AllianceminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2023Partner for Dreamer Exploration Summit and Dream Tour, with Chris Taranto, Communications Director, leading viticultural overview sessions.
• The Millinger GroupflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Co-creator of the FLOurish mentoring program with Dream Big Darling founder Amanda Wittstrom-Higgins. Rona Millinger, founder and president, provides personalized coaching and Caliper Assessments for scholarship recipients. The program is inspired by Rona's mentor Florence Pramberger.
• Wine Business MonthlyminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2021Partnership to offer scholarships to the Central Coast Insights conference for qualified up-and-coming women interested in pursuing wine business education.
• Amanda Wittstrom-HigginscoreOthers · 1 January 2018Founder and President of Dream Big Darling. Industry trailblazer who identified the need for mentorship and support for young women in the wine and beverage industry. Serves as Board President and driving force behind the organization.
• The Somm JournalcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2018Publishes essays from selected Dream Big Darling community members via the Fresh Voices media platform program. National print publication covering trends, tastemakers and brands in wine and spirits. Meridith May serves as Executive Editor & Publisher and is also an advisor to Dream Big Darling.
• The Tasting Panel MagazinecoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2018Publishes essays from selected Dream Big Darling community members via the Fresh Voices media platform program. National publication for wine and spirits industry with over 100,000 readership, published 11 times a year.
• Chuck FuruyacoreOthers · 1 January 2018Master Sommelier and advisor to Dream Big Darling. Featured speaker at events and retreats. Industry veteran who contributes expertise and mentorship to the community.
• Meridith MaycoreOthers · 1 January 2018Executive Editor & Publisher of SOMM Journal and Tasting Panel, and Clever Route. Advisor to Dream Big Darling and partner in the Fresh Voices media platform program.
• One Stone Cellars by Ancient Peaks WinerycoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2016Annually donates a percentage of proceeds from each bottle sold to Dream Big Darling. Made by Paso Robles winery Ancient Peaks, the One Stone wine line celebrates up-and-coming women who are the future of the industry. The brand name derives from the quote: 'The woman who moves a mountain starts with one single stone.' Delivered $44,000 donation in 2023.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Women of the Vine & Spirits: Global nonprofit alliance dedicated to empowering women in the wine and spirits industry through education, mentorship, and networking. Most direct comparable — same vertical, same beneficiary population, similar professional-development programming.
• Pink Boots Society: Nonprofit supporting women in the brewing industry through scholarships, education, and community. Highly comparable model — vertical-specific (beverage alcohol), scholarship-driven, mentorship-focused — with the analogous gender-equity mission applied to beer rather than wine/spirits.
• Les Dames d'Escoffier International: Invitational society of women leaders in food, fine beverage, and hospitality. Operates scholarships, mentorship, and grantmaking for women in culinary and beverage careers, with chapters nationwide — closely analogous structure to DBD's regional chapter-and-scholarship model.
• SommFoundation: Nonprofit providing scholarships and educational support to wine and hospitality professionals. Directly comparable in scholarship-for-wine-professionals focus, though not gender-specific.
• The Culinary Trust: Nonprofit grantmaking organization supporting education, scholarships, and research in the culinary arts. Closely parallel structure to DBD as a grantmaking-education nonprofit, with culinary rather than wine/spirits focus.

Broad incumbents

• Court of Master Sommeliers, Americas: The leading certification body for sommeliers in the Americas. While focused on credentialing rather than gender equity, it represents the broader wine-education ecosystem in which DBD operates and could partner with or compete for the same professional-development audience.
• International Wine & Spirit Competition (IWSC) Foundation: Industry awards body with associated foundation supporting education and diversity initiatives in wine and spirits. Comparable in industry positioning and educational-program mandate, though at a much larger scale and global scope.

Regional players

• Wine Future (scholarship and education programs): Wine industry education and conference initiatives that include scholarship components. Comparable in audience (wine professionals) and education focus, though with a more global/general scope rather than gender-specific.

Emerging players

• Brown Girls Wine: Community and education platform supporting women of color in the wine industry. Overlaps with DBD's mission of supporting women in wine but is community/media-led rather than scholarship/retreat-led, and targets a more specific demographic.

Others

• American Association of Wine Economists (AAWE): Academic/professional association supporting wine industry research and education. Adjacent rather than directly comparable — research-focused rather than mentorship-driven — but operates in the same wine-industry ecosystem.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/dreambigdarling_org

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Dream Big Darling