The official champagne of the National Basketball Players Association partners with Thirstie Inc. to build an innovative “DTC” purchase option for consumers on the Cheurlin website.
Cheurlin Champagne, the award-winning champagne imported and owned by NBA Hall of Famer Isiah Thomas, announced earlier this month the launch of an e-commerce storefront powered by Thirstie Inc., the leader in e-commerce and data solutions for beverage alcoholbrands.
READ MORE: 1-Year Anniversary of Isiah Thomas’ Historic Cheurlin Champagne, NBPA, THINK450 Partnership
Thomas, 100% owner and importer, brought Cheurlin Champagne to the US in 2016, making it the largest minority owned champagne in the world. Many African-American srtists and celebrities have since ventured into the wine industry, but Isiah is currently the only Black person to own a vineyard and select his own personally cultivated grapes.
Founded in the Aube in 1788, the Cheurlin family celebrates over nine generations of growers and have continued the hands-on tradition staking their name and reputation on crafting France’s finest Champagne. The full suite of products is now available for US consumers to order via the Cheurlin website, thanks to an innovative technology partnership with Thirstie.
The Thirstie-powered e-commerce storefront offers customers across the country the ability toorder for shipping and same-day delivery via a local retailer in the Thirstie Network. Thisprovides American consumers with the best method for acquiring this historic and highlysought-after champagne.
READ MORE: Isiah Thomas Continues To Lead Through Latest Venture With Cheurlin Champagne
“I take great pride in being able to expand Cheurlin Champagne to US consumers; this partnership with Thirstie is the next step in that journey,” said Chairman, CEO and NBA Hall of Famer Isiah Thomas. “With Thirstie’s technology and data solutions, Cheurlin and ISIAH Imports are staying at the forefront of innovation while providing American consumers with the best method for acquiring this historic and highly sought-after champagne.”
“We’re honored to be joining Isiah and the Cheurlin Family on their mission to bringing this fine champagne to the US online market,” said Thirstie CEO Devaraj Southworth.
“Thirstie’s cutting-edge technology, coupled with our innovative data solutions, helps ensure Cheurlin is available for shipping and delivery to 200 million Americans. We couldn’t be more excited to be partnering with Cheurlin as they grow their online presence.”
Thomas, a two-time NBA champion, coach and executive, entrepreneur extraordinaire and longtime network analyst made the headlines lately when he dove into the year-long, Last Dance-inspired social media discussion about Micheal Jordan’s legacy and whether or not Jordan dominated all of his contemporaries.
Thomas spoke with ”Club Shay Shay” host Shannon Sharpe about Thomas’ battles with MJ in the late 80s, early 90s.
READ MORE: The Diary of Isiah Thomas, Part I
“Until ’91, when I basically had career-ending wrist surgery, up until then, my record against him and his team—it really wasn’t competition there,” said Thomas.
Thomas says he is in fact ahead of Jordan, the six-time NBA champion. “Just head-to-head, I was dominant over him,” said the Pistons legend.
“He just wasn’t my competition,” he adds. “My focus was Bird, Magic, Dr. J [Julius Erving], Kareem Abdul-Jabbar,” said Thomas.
“Those were the guys. I don’t care what anybody says. You can go back and look at history—those were the guys.”
When he’s not talking smack back and forth with MJ, Thomas is making moves in the business world with the same tenacity.
His latest venture with Thirstie announced the launch of its Access solution earlier this year, which provides alcohol brands of all sizes the ability to build, manage, and grow online , storefronts that offer consumers an avenue for “DTC” style purchases. Since the launch of the Thirstie Access solution, over 100 individual brands have begun utilizing the service.
Thomas is Chairman and CEO of ISIAH International LLC, and Isiah Imports, a certifiedminority owned investment holdings company. For over 30 years, he has been investing in newand existing businesses. Born and raised on Chicago’s West Side, his professional career spansmore than three decades in sports, business, and entertainment.
READ MORE: The Diary of Isiah Thomas, Part II
Isiah has garnered worldwide attention for his contributions in all levels of professional basketball, including induction into the NBA Hall of Fame, and for his distinctive business start-ups and philanthropic endeavors.
A wine and champagne enthusiast, Isiah wanted a great tasting champagne without the sugar found in most brands. His research revealed France’s champagne growers pay homage to nature focusing on soil, topography, and climate. Isiah concluded that artisanship was the answer and the future of champagne.
His pursuit led him to the Cheurlin family who has crafted France’s finest champagnes since 1788. Confident they are the region’s best producer of champagne – an alliance was born. Isiah Imports, is the exclusive United States owner and importer of Cheurlin Champagnes.
