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- drinkwine - 05-06-2003
can you give me some suggestions, advice, comments on purchasing a wine/liquor store in long island, n.y. have done extensive research and the 3 yr. P&L looks promising.
Have never been in the business but am familiar retail business.
any comments, suggestions, pros, cons would be helpful.
Is this a dream that i should follow?
- winoweenie - 05-07-2003
OK FOODIE......WHERE THE BLAZES ARE YOU?????WW
- Thomas - 05-07-2003
Here I am ww, buried under bills and trying to work my way toward a profit...
If it is a dream, go for it. But be prepared for dreams to fail. The two best things one can say about any business that starts as a dream are: it is a success; it failed but I have no regrets for doing what I dreamed of doing.
It is not my place to tell someone what to do with his/her life, but I am full of suggestions once the decision has been made.
[This message has been edited by foodie (edited 05-07-2003).]
- drinkwine - 05-07-2003
thanks
do you have any constructive comments that may assist in making the final decision??
is location, location, location still a big factor???
any other suggestions/comments please..
thanks.
- Innkeeper - 05-07-2003
Keep an eye on Albany. Things finally seem to be changing in NY. You may have to be prepared to be open seven days a week, and compete with super markets and out of state shipping.
- Thomas - 05-07-2003
IK, I welcome the supermarket thing; it will allow me to sell foods like olive oil, cheese, et al, plus, the supermarkets will likely do a miserable job at providing both service and interesting wines, which are is-wine traits.
drinkwine, location is important, especially if you are to rely on walk-in business. Also, make sure you know a lot about wine before you try selling it, and DO NOT let distributors dictate what you should sell, unless you have no intention of doing the selling yourself and you want run-of-the-mill brand names to make you a fortune. Be aware that the majority of big distributors are not generally wine savvy--they think in terms of boxes moved. We do very little business with big distributors.
- drinkwine - 05-07-2003
thanks for the info.
i've been trying to learn as much as i can about wines.
went to sonoma,ca. to visit wineries last year.
any suggestions on any information that would be good to use as a wine "bible"
would working part time at a wine store to gather more info be a good idea?
any other good advice would help
thanks
- Innkeeper - 05-07-2003
One other factor to keep in mind is that New Yorkers in general, and Long Islanders in particular are unbelievably snobbish; the very reason I fled there. If you have a Southern Accent, it will not be viewed as being quaint. Quite the opposite.
- drinkwine - 05-07-2003
thanks for that insight,
after residing in texas
people can't be any more snobbish or any more arrogant than texans.
am i safe to say that the common denominator to a wine/liquor store is to have customer service? So having good customer service would be an advantage?
what else do you think would be an advantage over other operations?
- Innkeeper - 05-07-2003
Customer service is the best place to start. If you are buying an ongoing operation you need to maintain the clientele, by not making too many changes all at once. If not, or if you are suddenly comfronted with a huge competitor or a supermarket across the street, you need to do what those who compete with WalMart do; offer what they don't. Foodie did a great job at this. You won't find what he offers within a mile of his place, and what he offers is very good.
- ShortWiner - 05-07-2003
Customer service could certainly be a big selling point for you, if you do it right. I am most drawn to wine shops (like Foodie's shop, is-wine) that are ready and willing to educate me in a way that feels good--they take the time to talk to me, ask what I like, LISTEN, make suggestions, and explain their suggestions. I hate sales pitches, especially if they sound pre-packaged, and I hate blatant snobbishness, though high standards are fine. I like it when a wine merchant recognizes that I know a little something about wine and isn't threatened by that fact. I will pay more for this, and I do. Such places are not readily found.
All that said, I'm probably not your average customer, and while I buy a fair amount of wine, I don't generally go for the very expensive stuff and people like me alone probably wouldn't keep you in business. You may need to be able to cater to the status-conscious stock brokers who want Turleys and whatnot. The really successful-seeming wine shops I've been to tend to be either high volume clearing-house type places or they're walking a fine line between accessibility and a sense of insider snobbery. The latter seems like a difficult thing to do well, at I think it takes talent and a LOT of knowledge.
So there's a customers point of view, for what it's worth. Good luck!
- drinkwine - 05-07-2003
thanks innkeeper and shortwiner for those comments,
my partner with the financial background-doing the majority of our research,
and with my customer service background(for the past 10 yrs. from retail to currently in the hotel business @ a 4* hotel)
i knew that a good clientele base and good customer service would be an advantage.
in searching for stores to purchase.
Am correct by telling him that i wanted him to research a location that
customers come in on a regular basis and purchase wine/liquor and would even come in just to talk rather than those customers who come in only on special occasions driving up in their high dollar car and only buying once every special occassion asking us to "give me the most expensive champagne that you have"-- not that we wouldn't love to have those kinds-
but a repeat clientele-would be more desireable. Think we're on the right track?
- winoweenie - 05-07-2003
Knowledge, Location, Location, Knowledge, Customer Service, and availability of product are the 6 hallmarks for success here in the west. Have no clue about New York. Do know that out here you can be a Wine Expo with a slug of super P/Q product and a Roberto knowing the product like his bonita from Argentina, or a Duke of Bourbon with a high-profile clientle and every boutique wine available to snag thier pompous interest, or a Hi Time Cellars with a passel of both. Good luck on whatever road you take, but make sure you don't get on a detour. WW
- Thomas - 05-08-2003
One more thing: if you are going into a partnership, the first thing to do is lower your expectations of the other's input--and that is no joke, it is a fact of life.
- Thomas - 05-08-2003
Wait a minute! What's this stuff about snobs in New York?
- ShortWiner - 05-08-2003
The out-of-towners just don't understand us, Foodie. *sigh* It seems NY is the only refuge for the tasteful these days...what a burden. [img]http://www.wines.com/ubb2/wink.gif[/img]
- drinkwine - 05-08-2003
hey shortwiner,
any wine/liqor stores in your area that we should look at?? my partner is in long island, and commutes in to the city, i'm sure he can swing by and look at any that you can suggest to us.
thanks
- Innkeeper - 05-08-2003
Thought I'd get a rise out of youse. Did emphasize Longgiland where a Southern accent would be something less than an advantage.
- Thomas - 05-08-2003
drinkwine. your partner can look up this site: www.is-wine.com and then come visit.
IK, it's pronounced: Lunggeyelon'
- wondersofwine - 05-08-2003
Working parttime in a wine store does sound like a good way to learn more about the business before taking such a plunge. If you pursue this, try to find a wine retailer who can mentor you (knowledgeable and in the store many hours). You should probably be honest with the owner/manager that you want to go out on your own eventually but not in the same neighborhood where you would be directly competing.
Three facets of customer service that I appreciate in my usual wine store are:
1) frequent tastings (free tastings every Saturday and paid tastings or wine dinners (with a sister restaurant) fairly often--I tend to buy what I have already tried and liked.
2) If you can manage this (a big if in New York area where real estate is probably beaucoup expensive per square foot), temperature-controlled storage for up to six months for your customers. This is a real advantage with the hot summers in North Carolina. At least keep the wines under good storage conditions prior to sale (not upright for long periods; not too hot) and try to work with shippers/distributors to see that they ship and store under controlled temperatures.
3) Good website with notification by e-mail to customers of specials, new arrivals, etc. Is-wine, Carolina Wine Company, and Bassin's in DC all do some or all of this as do many other wine retailers.
[This message has been edited by wondersofwine (edited 05-08-2003).]