After years of binge-watching Sex and the City and thumbing through Sarah Jessica Parker profiles in fashion magazines, this journalist and SJP superfan couldn’t help but wonder: What would an interview with her actually be like? Would we meet for coffee and compliment each other’s shoes before diving into a passionate conversation about books and Broadway? Or would we go for a walk through her beloved West Village, pointing out favorite neighborhood spots along the way?
One part of that fantasy came true a couple of weeks ago when I sat down with the multi-hyphenate actress, designer and entrepreneur to talk about her wine, Invivo X, SJP. Our meeting unfolded a bit differently than I’d imagined: we connected over Zoom—as one does these days. She was in a conference room somewhere in Manhattan, seated alongside her business partners and Invivo co-founders, Tim Lightbourne (the marketer) and Rob Cameron (the winemaker)—all of them politely eating what looked like some kind of delicious Asian takeout. I, meanwhile, was excitedly perched in my Miami home office, curious to learn about this new venture.
SJP has been involved with Invivo for nearly seven years (!), participating in blending sessions, designing labels, and meeting with distributors—everything a real winemaker would. “I’m 100 percent involved and it's a lot of work, which is wonderful. It's a massive education, and therefore I can be the most informed, best advocate and greatest cheerleader for a product that not just has my name on it, but a lot of dollars and time invested,” said Sarah Jessica.
The three of them have successfully launched a range of wines, including an award-winning Sauvignon Blanc from Australia, a Pinot Noir from New Zealand, and a French rosé—which, as of press time, is now officially available at Publix stores across Florida. (Invivo X, SJP wines are also available at Total Wine, H-E-B, Ralphs Grocery, Wine.com and more.)
In between bites of noodles, Sarah Jessica, Rob, Tim, and I talked about the significance of a Publix placement (spoiler: none has yet experienced the joy of a Pub Sub), the dedication that goes into producing high-quality, affordable wine, and why there’s no such thing as the perfect pairing.
This interview has been condensed for clarity.
The market is saturated with celebrity-owned and -led wines. What sets Invivo apart?
Sarah Jessica: I've never thought of this as a celebrity brand or endeavor, and that's sort of the way I've approached all the businesses that I've been lucky enough to participate in or have ownership in. I think, for better or worse, I sort of look at business differently, which is: I want to be working with people who are the best at what they do, that I can learn from, and that I, you know, also—for better or worse—can be 100 percent involved. It's a lot of work, which is wonderful, and it's a massive education. Therefore, I can be the most informed, best advocate and greatest cheerleader for a product that not just has my name on it, but a lot of dollars and time invested.
Tell us about your partnership with Publix. I, for one, am thrilled about being able to grab my groceries and a bottle of wine in one trip.
Tim: I think I approached Publix three years ago for a meeting with us. It’s such an iconic retail company, and we had to wait for our time. There are no favors. It's taken three years just for that meeting we had earlier this year. They wanted to see the brand, traction, accolades, quality—all that sort of stuff.
Sarah Jessica: Coming to [Lakeland,] Florida and meeting with the Publix team is just a great example of what we've been doing now for six years. And we're going into stores where we're signing bottles, which is great for our customers.
The brand feels intentional but never takes itself too seriously. Was that balance deliberate from the start?
Tim: Wine is such a beautiful product—it brings people together; it's what you're sharing with your family and your friends. It's a great part of our lives—hence in vivo, which means “in life.” And so we wanted to convey that message a little bit, that you don’t have to be a hugely knowledgeable wine expert to enjoy wine.
Let’s talk design. How important was the label design?
Sarah Jessica: When we finally got to the conversations about labels, I found it very daunting because, as you know, there are literally millions and millions of labels, and thousands of them are beautiful, depicting a scene or atmosphere. I knew that we had one chance to get it right, and that we had to find a way to stand out on a shelf filled with labels. In the middle of hundreds and hundreds of designs featuring streams, rivers, lakes, mountains, and trees, there’s just a very simple, graphic, strong image.
Can you tell us more about your annual blending session? How do you prepare?
Sarah Jessica: We're meeting twice a year, sometimes three times. It depends, because we have three wines, so we meet as often as possible in person together, which is the most ideal scenario for blending. But of course, over COVID, we had to change strategies. So Tim and Rob remained in New Zealand. They were shipping bottles, which is, you know, treacherous. It's also sort of scary, just in my head, in terms of what it has been exposed to on the flight over—like heat and cold—and are we going to be tasting the same thing? I love it when we're all together, and I’d say we probably manage to do that about 50 to 60 percent of the time.
Rob: The language between us is super understandable because it's really obvious—and that's the fun part. It can take hours sometimes; sometimes we don't even get it, but when we know, when we get it, we really know we've got it.
The wine isn’t known for traditional wine pairings, but what are some of your go-tos?
Sarah Jessica: The thing that Rob, Tim, and I have talked about all the time is that there are just no rules. People want to drink rosé with a steak? Go ahead. People want to drink rosé with lamb stew? Go ahead. You want to drink it with your pizza? Go ahead. You want to drink it in freezing March? Go ahead! I don't know how to do pairings, so I'm the last person to ask.
What’s next for Invivo?
Tim: I mean, we are working on some new stuff. I can't tell you yet until it's released, but there's some exciting stuff. The wines are getting consistent accolades—90 points from Wine Spectator six years in a row and three times top 100 in the world for the first six vintages, which is just unheard of. So, watch this space.
How do you deal with a hangover? Can you share any tips?
Sarah Jessica: I don't think I've ever had a hangover in my entire life. I'm not sure what one feels like.
Tim: I’m jealous.