Julie Bretland is co-founder of Artelium Wine Estate with her husband Mark Collins. Julie & Mark founded Artelium to bring together their great passions for wine art and nature. They had a shared interest in wine, using their holidays to visit vineyards around the world. In 2013, whilst planning their wedding, they decided to serve only English wine. Through their research, from Kent to Hampshire, they discovered the breadth of quality and innovation happening in English wine. Their passion transformed into a lifestyle, and they embarked on a journey to set up their own wine estate.
Sussex was a natural choice; Julie grew up in Haywards Heath, close to Artelium’s East Sussex vineyard and tasting room, in Streat, Ditchling. When a plot of land perfect for planting vines (south facing, on a slope, with clay soil), the pair jumped at the chance. From 2013 to now, the Artelium estate is now spread across two sites: one West Sussex, with 85,000 vines and the winery and the other in East Sussex near Ditchling with 45,000 vines with their cellar door and hospitality offering. Artelium is more than just a wine estate, the name comes from a combination of ‘Art’ and ‘-ium,’ a Latin suffix used to denote place where people congregate, such as a stadium or aquarium. In that sense, Artelium is the embodiment of a long-held vision to create a space for people to come together and enjoy wine and art in a beautiful natural setting.
Before embarking on the Artelium journey, Julie developed, launched and managed innovative mobile services for nearly 20 years for big corporates such as Ericsson and Vodafone as well as start-ups across Europe and Africa. She was the founder of Our Mobile Health, set up with the aim of harnessing mobile technology to help us lead healthier lives, by providing a curated application store to promote the best of the best mobile health applications.
Julie studied for her MBA at London Business School, as a recipient of the prestigious Celia Atkin Advent scholarship. She was a winner of the Deloitte’s Institute of Innovation and Entrepreneurship Founders Award, was a founding member of the GSM Associations ‘Connected Women’ programme and co-founder of the Digital Health Professionals Network and a member of the expert panel of the London Mayor’s Health Commission.