Behold…The Rational Wine Consumer
In March, after a multi-year political battle, the Governor of Texas did not sign a law allowing sales of wine in grocery stores. Instead he signed a bill allowing cities and counties to vote on whether to sell wine in grocery stores.
In June campaigns in a number of Tennessee cities began to gather signatures to put the question of whether wine should be sold in grocery stores there on the November ballot.
Yesterday, after only three months, it was announced that enough signatures had been gathered in 80 cities to put the wine in grocery store question on the November ballot.
I have a feeling that after the votes in these 80 cities are counted after the November elections it will become clear that a much more efficient remedy to this question would have been to either 1) simply pass a law allowing grocery store sales of wine everywhere or 2) have a state-wide vote on the question.
In the end, consumers always prove they want rational convenience, even where alcohol is concerned.
Remarkably, there are still 11 states where wine may not be sold in grocery stores. These 11 include New York. There a coalition of retailers has beaten back commonsense attempts to change that law by claiming grocery store sales of wine will put them out of business. This despite the fact that laws proposing grocery store wine sales have also included proposals to allow the ownership of more than one liquor store…currently the law.
Every plea you see in any state to keep wine out of grocery store sales is a slap in the face to consumers and a protectionist bid. Nothing less, nothing more.
Other than New York, we have never lived in a state that didn’t allow sales in grocery or convenient stores. I don’t find any advantage in this. Can’t remember buying wine any place except in wine and liquor retail outlets and online. This reason is not just the predictable selection in other markets, but the manner in which they are retailed; standing up in a warm or even hot environment. In small grocers and convenient stores I see the same bottles of the shelf for months, even years!
Carl,
What a shame. That’s not my experience. I’ve witnessed a number if really outstanding grocery store wine departments, bothe large and small and in a number of states.
Tom, since I live in Tennessee, I can tell you that the effort to put wine in grocery stores here has nothing to do with any populist groundswell from the general public and everything to do with the big-box national grocers and the money they are able to bring to bear with our state legislature. Putting aside the question of whether wine should or should not be made more available in more venues, the laws here have been the same since Prohibition ended. During all that time until now, there was no hue and cry from the public over this issue. What changed? The ascendency of huge national retail grocery chains and their increased ability to use their money to influence governments to their advantage. A few hundred single-location mom-and-pop liquor and wine retailers were simply outgunned in terms of money and influence by Kroger, Target, and Wal-Mart. You’re rooting for Goliath against David.
Scott,
I’m with the consumer, not anyone else. It’s about convenience and access in the same way direct shipping was and is about convenience and access.
Best,
Tom…