Beverage Dynamics is the largest national business magazine devoted exclusively to the needs of off-premise beverage alcohol retailers, from single liquor stores to big box chains, through coverage of the latest trends in wine, beer and spirits.
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/303900
14 Beverage Dynamics • May/June 2014 www.beveragedynamics.com [ RETAIL PROFILE ] events, where we were pigeon holed in our old stores," says Jack's son and company president Ted Farrell. Recently, the store hosted a Maker's Mark promotion in which the distiller brought in equipment that dipped bottles into the brand's trademark wax seal and etched them, for example. "Now we have the elbow room to do those kind of events and do them well without hav- ing to manipulate our store too much to make room," he says. As the beverage alcohol retailing business changes, operations like Haskell's, which has made its mark through promoting wine at all levels, a massive selection and knowledgeable staff, must adapt, Jack says. "We really do have to keep up on the way things are changing. Twenty or 25 years ago, I knew most of the people in the wine business; today, I feel like a rank amateur sometimes, with so many new wineries and regions opening up." "It's an evolving business — some of those wines that were fabulous a few years ago are mediocre now." He was reminded of that speed of change recently on a trip to the wineries of Israel, where he found numerous world class wines. As well as increas- ing skus of wine, stores like his must keep service staff interaction very high. "You go into big box stores and they might have a lot of skus, but there's nobody there to answer any questions for you. A successful wine merchant should have people on the fl oor to answer questions and give some guidance." Recently, Haskell's stock of elite and high end wine is starting to move again, although the good old days of the turn of the cen- tury are not at all returned. "Nowadays when you see someone interested in a case of Latour, it almost sends ripples through your company, whereas before the response might have been 'So what?'" says Jack. Also reduced and unlikely to return are newspaper ads — the stores keep in touch with customers via an organically built e-mail list, tied to the point-of-sale that allows them to target customers and alert them when certain items are discounted or available. They, of course, have a Facebook and Twitter pres- ence, with Twitter serving as a good attention getter for sales and special events. MASSIVE BEER COOLER While showcasing the impressive wine selection is key to the store's early success (Haskell's has long gathered about 60% or more of its retail volume from wine and they are offi cially known now as "Haskell's, The Wine People"), other changes have been introduced to adapt to contemporary shoppers, particularly the store's massive self-service, walk-in beer cooler. Nearly 20 doors along the wall of the store, it holds an enormous selection. "A lot of our stores have an emphasis on beer, but with the craze for craft beer, we decided there was a need for more focus. It's an area we haven't neglected but haven't put as much emphasis on it, and being able to is a direct result of all the square footage we have here," says Ted. The appeal of craft beers is perhaps growing faster in the Twin Cities area than other areas, he says, with more than 20 microbrewers in business and more opening all the time. Sea- sonal beers are a "phenomenon" there, and Ted credits the way craft brewers have excelled at social media, sending out news about new iterations and release dates. "When a limited time offer pumpkin ale or IPA comes in, the 10 or 15 cases we get are almost sold out before they get into the store." "If someone had told me you could get $20 for a bottle of beer as recently as ten years ago, I would have told them to get their head examined, but today these craft beers come in, allocated, and they're in and out in a couple of days, and the Haskell's new Maple Grove, MN, store features a huge walk-in, self-service beer cave. The store is also focused on offering a wide selection of craft beers.