Board Members

Denise von Wald

Chair

Denise is both a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and a Certified Practising Marketer with experience in senior executive and marketing roles in the South Australian, national, and international tourism and education sectors, and a track record of innovation and creative thinking, leading to increased visitor numbers, expanded commercial relationships and greater brand recognition.

With 20 years of Non-Executive Director experience on a diverse range of Boards, Denise is a Board member of the Adelaide Economic Development Agency, Adelaide Venue Management Corporation, Festival City Adelaide and Student Accommodation Association. Denise is currently Principal and CEO of St Ann’s Residential College. Prior to this she was Tourism Australia's Regional General Manager for the United Kingdom (UK) and Northern Europe, based in London for five years, and Chief Executive of Education/Study Adelaide, the key marketing organisation promoting South Australia as an international education destination.

David Papa

Director

David is an Executive Director at Bentleys SA, leading the Business Advancement, Audit and Assurance teams and has 17 years’ experience working with many not-for-profits in South Australia as a financial accounting, audit and risk management provider. David's experience has extended to the wine and tourism sectors in varying capacities, including advisory support of the SAWIA and Bentleys Annual SA Wine Industry Snapshot.

Professor Larry Lockshin

Director

Larry is a trained viticulturist (MSc from Cornell) and marketer (PhD from Ohio State), who has spent the last 30 years working with the wine industry and a range of other major companies through the Ehrenberg Bass Institute of Marketing Science at UniSA. Larry's strengths are in strategic and people management through his work mainly at UniSA alongside his skills as a marketer. Larry has consulted for a number of wine companies here in Australia and overseas in strategy and wine marketing.

Dr. Wes Pearson

Director

Dr. Wes Pearson is a senior research scientist and sensory group manager at the Australian Wine Research Institute in Adelaide, as well as winemaker and director of Juxtaposed Wines in McLaren Vale. He holds a BSc in Wine Biochemistry from the University of British Columbia, a diploma in Applied Sensory and Consumer Science from the University of California Davis and a PhD from Charles Sturt University. He has worked in the sensory group at the AWRI since 2010 and has completed hundreds of sensory studies and authored over 25 research papers in that time. He is an alumnus of the Len Evans Tutorial and of Wine Australia’s Future Leaders program, and has completed the Australian Institute of Company Directors course.

Matthew Deller MW

Director

Matthew Deller MW is CEO for Wirra Wirra and Ashton Hills, two of Australia’s most admired wineries. Previously, Matt lived in New Zealand, most recently as Global Sales & Marketing Chief for Villa Maria and spent eight years in the USA with the iconic Robert Mondavi Winery and as Chief Operating Officer for cult Napa Valley winery TOR. Matt passed the Master of Wine exams in 2016, is now a member of the Governance Committee for the Institute of Masters of Wine, the program committee for the MW Symposium in Adelaide 2026 and the Board of Directors for the MW Endowment Company.

Sami Gilligan

Director

Sami is owner and operator of McLaren Vale businesses Gilligan Contracting, the Wetlands Vineyard, Flex Logistics and Pallet & Barrel. He has extensive experience in wine industry boards and committees, currently serving on the Primary Producers SA Transport Committee (as Committee Convener) and the Australian Grape & Wine Vignerons Committee. Sami has also previously served on the MVGWTA Board, Wine Grape Council of SA Board and Australian Women in Wine Advisory Board.

Megan Hender

Director

Vineyard owner and lawyer, since 2002 Megan has run management consulting business Megan Hender Consulting, working with a wide variety of organisations in SA and interstate. Megan is an experienced Board Director with a strong interest in strategy, governance and professional and enterprise risk. She was formerly a two-term elected member of the City of Adelaide, where she served for 18 months as Deputy Lord Mayor and worked closely with the Premier, Ministers and senior SA government officials. She is a member of, and has regularly presented at, the Australian Institute of Company Directors and has sat on boards and committees of significant SA organisations including the Adelaide Convention Centre, Adelaide Festival of Arts, Adelaide Central Market Authority and Adelaide Showgrounds Farmers Market.

Paula Newman

Director

BAppSc (Natural Resource Management), Grad Dip (Wine), GAICD

Paula Newman is a highly experienced executive leader with over 35 years of involvement in the viticulture, agribusiness, and wine sectors, underpinned by a deep passion for regional development and sustainable growth. As General Manager of Winegrapes Australia, based in McLaren Vale, she brings a commercially astute perspective to the McLaren Vale region.

With a strong record of governance and leadership across industry organisations, Paula has held senior roles including CEO and Executive Director, where she has successfully guided teams and businesses through strategic growth, change management, and evolving market conditions. She excels in fostering collaboration across stakeholders and aligning operational excellence with long-term strategic goals.

Her key areas of expertise include regional and industry advocacy, ESG and sustainability leadership, strategic planning, financial oversight, and stakeholder engagement. She has a demonstrated commitment to the wine community through her leadership roles with the Wine Grape Council of South Australia and Wine Industry Suppliers Australia Inc., where she served as Chair from 2017 to 2020.

An alumna of Wine Australia’s Future Leaders Program (2017) and a mentor for its 2022 cohort, Paula is also a graduate of the AICD Company Directors Course.