FYI
Retailers Gather in Dallas for Third Annual BDLive!
By Jeremy Nedelka
he BDLive! Conference is the only national
event dedicated to the off-premise beverage
alcohol industry. Once again, nearly several
dozen beverage alcohol retailers gathered in Dallas at
the Crowne Plaza Downtown for the third annual
event, held on February 14.
"I really enjoyed the topics discussed and gleaned
much from all the presentations," said Hermen Key, VP
of Operations at Texas-based Spec's. Jeff Jansen, owner
of Van's Liquors in Illinois, concurred. "This is my second year attending and once again it was a really great
conference," he said. "The information was useful and
T
Emcee Darryl Rosen
kicks off the thirdannual BDLive!
Conference.
Beverage Information
Group EVP and Group
Publisher Charles
Forman presents the
2013 Retailer of the
Year Award to Mark
Notarius. Notarius
accepted on behalf of
the Notarius Family,
which includes his
father Burt, owner of
Premier Wine and
Spirits, and his brother
Jon, co-owner with him
of Premier Gourmet,
both in Amherst, NY.
Laura Welsh, a client
director at Nielsen, presents the latest beverage
industry research report:
"Transforming Trends
into Sales."
the content was right on. I look forward to next year!"
The event began with the opening-night "I Love
Dallas" reception, which featured the Dallas Bar Stars,
local mixologists who created signature drinks created
for the Cheers Beverage Conference and BDLive!
The following day's events opened with remarks
from Beverage Information Group Executive Vice
President and Group Publisher Charles Forman. He
introduced emcee Darryl Rosen, a management consultant and no stranger to the off-premise beverage
alcohol industry.
Paul Santelle's keynote, "How to Survive – and
Thrive – as an Independent Brick-and-Mortar Retailer,"
offered advice for keeping up with warehouse and online
competitors. Santelle is the President of the New Jersey
Liquor Store Alliance and the owner of Garden State
Liquors. "I have 50 stores within five miles of mine,
three of which are warehouse stores," he shared with
attendees. Among his advice for how to compete in a
crowded marketplace? "I started going to competitors'
stores and talking to the customers there. And I've made
adjustments to my own store based on their comments."
This year's retail panel, moderated by Darryl Rosen,
featured Mark Notarius, co-owner of Premier Gourmet
in Amherst, NY; Brian Rosen, COO of Evolution Wines
and Spirits in Chicago; Jim Dean, owner of Hazel's
Beverage World in Boulder, CO; and Paul Kaspszak,
Executive Director of the Minnesota Municipal
A retailer panel moderated by Darryl Rosen discusses the latest issues facing the off-premise
industry. Panelists included Jim Dean, Owner of
Hazel's Beverage World; Mark Notarius, Coowner of Premier Gourmet; Brian Rosen, COO of
Evolution Wines and Spirits; and Paul Kaspszak,
Executive Director of the Minnesota Municipal
Beverage Association.
12 • Beverage Dynamics • www.beveragedynamics.com • March/April 2013