Fine Wine Trading

Meet The Team

We view our team as being as one of our most important assets. They are enthusiastic , knowledgeable and passionate about providing our customers with the information and service they require.

Simon Larkin MW, Head of Fine Wine Trading

Often described as a commercial MW, I have been with Lay & Wheeler for 13 years, working my way up from the cellars to my current role as Head of Trading. I passed the Master of Wine examination back in 2001 at the first attempt, and won the Madame Bollinger Award for excellence in tasting.

Playing an active role in Lay & Wheeler’s buying strategy, I buy for the Rhône Valley, Champagne and Alsace as well as being a key member on the buying panels for Bordeaux and Burgundy. Outside Lay & Wheeler, I taste and contribute to various wine journals.

Karen Graves, Fine Wine Trading

Following relocation from Cardiff to Suffolk, I joined Lay & Wheeler in 2004 as part of the Hotel & Restaurant sales team, moving to the Fine Wine Trading team in 2006. I have over twenty years’ sales experience gained in telecommunications and civil-engineering, to name but a few, and developed a keen interest in wine, following a three year working assignment on a Welsh vineyard estate.

Outside Lay & Wheeler, I make regular trips to Wales and the Cotswolds to visit family and friends and, when I venture a bit further afield, France or Italy are my destinations of choice.

Martin Wheatley, Fine Wine Trading

I have worked at Lay & Wheeler since 1993, with a five year interlude from 2000, during which I joined H&H Bancroft.

Outside work, I have recently renovated my house, indulging my love of interior design and gardening, and am also interested in classic cars (I own an original Fiat 500 called Dino). Good food and wine are often on the menu at home, my favourite wine regions being the Rhône and Bordeaux. On a slightly different note, I am a committed football fan and make regular trips to Yorkshire to watch my team.