THE STUDENTS:
Hayley Aubin - USA
Hayley's love for wine blossomed in her senior year of college at the University of Virginia, where she did tastings at 35 wineries in three months. Following this memorable experience, she took her love of wine to Los Angeles, California, where she worked in Sales and Product Operations for Winc, a DTC wine subscription startup. Hayley moved on to The Wonderful Company in search of a new challenge. For 3,5 years, she worked on the Supply Planning team for Justin Wine and Fiji Water, managing over 30 million production cases. MBA in hand, Hayley dreams of opening her own natural wine business and building a community of sustainability-minded oenophiles.
Mariia Chashchina – Russia
Through her initial education, Mariia, an architect and engineer, changed her career path almost seven years ago and chose the wine industry as her main development direction. Today, she is a professional with 6+ years of experience in three Russian cities (Perm, Yekaterinburg and Moscow), holds a WSET Level 2 certification and is preparing for Level 3. Extremely passionate about the wine and spirits culture, she dealt until recently with 500+ private and corporate clients in a significant wine trading company, holding up to 25 wine-tasting events in a month, studying fine wines and handling product marketing. Speaking many languages, she is willing to grow, develop and push existing boundaries internationally.
Julie Dillon – USA
Julie was born and raised in Colorado Springs, USA. Her hospitality journey started in Switzerland, China, and Spain, where she earned her Bachelor's degree in business administration in global hospitality management before moving to Orlando, Florida, to start her career. She worked in hotels and for Human Resources before deciding that food and beverage were her passions. She was a restaurant manager at Walt Disney World for three years. During that time, her love for wine and spirits was discovered. She successfully passed her WSET Level 2 in Wines and decided to pursue higher education, specifically in the wine and spirits business.
Heather Durham – USA
Heather, a WSET Diploma holder and a certified WSET educator, has dedicated her career to wine. After graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree, Heather has had diverse roles, including sommelier, winery operations manager, online wine education leader, content creator for social media, and successful wine salesperson for a distribution company. In 2023, she co-founded the Traverse Wine Institute, embodying her commitment to wine education. Heather's journey is a testament to her passion and expertise, and she hopes to inspire a new generation of wine enthusiasts and industry professionals.
Carina Fangman – Germany
After seven years of working as a consultant in Zurich's banking and telecommunications industry, in 2022, Carina decided to change her life and follow her dream of learning the art of winemaking. She flew to the other side of the world with a New Zealand visa in her pocket. She started working as a cellar hand for an estate in Martinborough, where she had incredible insights into the New World interpretations of Bordeaux blends. This experience's passion led Carina to start the MBA course at the Burgundy School of Business. With a particular interest in sustainability and its impact on wineries, she is excited to broaden her knowledge and make valuable connections with similarly passionate people.
Teresa Sandoval – Mexico
Teresa initially successfully pursued a Bachelor's degree in International Business. After twenty years in supply chain specializing in global procurement and conducting high-level negotiations with Asian partners, she decided to make an important career change and pursue her passion for wine. After completing the BSB MBA in Wine & Spirits Business, along with the WSET Level 3 in Wines, she will focus on working globally within the industry to transfer knowledge from countries with massive experience in wine, increase trade and enhance Mexican wine industry development.
Yunyun Xie – China
Yunyun comes from Shanghai, China, with a Master of Economics and 19+ years of working experience in the Global Finance Payment industry. She worked as director of Mastercard's Account Management Department, responsible for expanding Mastercard's business with one of its biggest clients in China. She successfully brought up two ranks in terms of volume in one year. Regardless of the achievements in her current work, she discovered her passion for wine after years of exploration, passed WSET Level 2 in Wines with distinction in 2022, and has now decided to delve deeper into this field at BSB. Besides she is also a China National Psychological Counsellor and China National Level 3 Tea Artist.
Yili (Ivy) Wu – China
Born and raised in China, Yili's early interest in the wine industry was sparked by her mother's wine distribution business. She took her first step toward formalizing her knowledge by completing the WSET Level 2 in Wines certification a decade ago. While assisting with the wine business, she pursued her first master's degree in Accounting in Melbourne, Australia, where she gained valuable insights into financial management. After that, Yili worked as a financial analyst in the FMCG industry in China for five years. With a deeper understanding of the Chinese market, she embarked on a journey to merge her financial expertise with her profound passion for wine.