What do you think?
We've spoken a lot in class about how one of the things that makes wine an interesting industry to study is that consumers love it and love to love it, but most wine drinkers have no idea what to buy and why.
We've touched on the role of the critic, the role of blogs, the role of friends and family, the role of the media, the role of apps like Vivino and finally, now a new player: the role of the wine shop in educating and shaping the tastes of wine drinkers. No, not your Bevmo's, but your boutique, friendly neighborhoods. Just as consumers are turning to craft beers and micro-distilleries (as we talked about last class), are smaller, locally-owned, high touch wine shops the future?
The article says yes, that "customers who cannot confidently scan a website or who don’t buy in quantity must visit a store."
If this is the case, then it is not about choosing your wine, but choosing your wine shop. Certainly, this is a less daunting tasks- there are likely fewer local wine shops than wine SKUs inside of them.
The NYT gives a few tips to help consumers pick a shop:
- Temperature of the shop
- Conditions (like light and dust)
- The level of personal investment in the descriptions at shelf
- Hospitality and personal attention: Does it feel transactional? Are the displays set up with more thought than varietal or country?
- Relationship-building: For example, do they save data on what you buy so they can better recommend wines to you during your next visit?
In addition to making me think about the role of the wine shop in educating consumers and guiding purchases, I also found myself thinking about some of the regulatory conversations we had.
First, if consumers start to rely on wine shops for their purchase decisions, what does that mean given how producers and retailers are allowed to interact? If this trend develops as the NYT suggests, will it benefit smaller producers, which could help shops differentiate themselves as experts?
Finally, I find it interesting how the NYT names specific wine shops. I don't know what regulations exist around a practice like this, but I would love to know how these shops made it to the page.
What do you think? And do you think this relationship between shop and drinker could be a Millennial thing or better-suited for older segments?
Thanks for flagging this article - I think it is potentially an interesting trend. However, one aspect that the NYT article seems to lack, which I think is particularly relevant for millennials, is the overall vibe of the shop and the people selling the wine. Are they old and stodgy and do they look down their noses at you if you come in with some kind of vague, uninformed request? Are there people that look like me working in the store so that I feel like I might belong here? Are they able to educate me and help me explore without making me feel ignorant and dreading a return trip?
ReplyDeleteWe've mentioned in class the snooty Cal Ave shop that specializes in Burgundy and caters to the serious collector. My guess is if most millennials walked in there wanting to try something new and get some recommendations they would walk out snubbed and frustrated. K&L on the other hand has friendly, approachable service and the clerks are eager to share their knowledge and recommendations and passion for wine without making the uninformed customer feel intimidated. As I wine shop, I think it's key to know really who you are trying to target and make sure that your customer experience aligns with that.
Regarding the question of whether the rise of wine shops will help small wineries, I find it hard to see how it makes a huge difference if the wholesalers still stand between the small producers and the retailers. Even if the knowledgeable retailers would like to carry some more obscure small wineries, how can they access the product if it's not carried by a distributor? It seems like small wineries would have to rely on retailers demanding that the distributor provide a certain product, which would be hard to imagine done effectively since each wine shop accounts for such a small portion of a distributor's business.
Kate, I think the vibe is a great point as well as the segmentation and targets. Thanks!
DeleteI personally am a huge promoter of buying wine from a dedicated wine shop, for all the reasons listed above and in the NYTimes article. For those of you who haven't visited local wine shops, I happen to love K&L (Redwood City), Beltramos (Menlo Park), Artisan Wine Depot (Mountain View), and Joseph George (San Jose). There are also countless great wine stores in SF if you ever find yourself up there.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with Kate on the point that wine shops don't help small wineries. I actually believe they are hugely influential in helping small wineries in a number of ways. First, small wine shop owners are incredibly passionate about wine. They often want to carry the best for the their customers and they have personal relationships with small wineries. As a result, they are more likely to request wines from specific wineries than a large retailer like Safeway. Safeway wants to carry the wine that is going to sell the fastest with the best margin. On the other hand, a wine store like K&L's business relies on a great selection that their customers love. They will go to great lengths with distributors to great good wine. In addition, dedicated wine stores help smaller wineries by raising customer awareness. In doing so, small wineries are more likely to have customer seek wine through the direct-to-consumer channel which we've discussed is much better margin-wise for the winery.
Emily, next time you go in there, it seems like you have good relationships with them, I would love to know how much time they spend on 'discovery' vs. more traditional tasks of running the business. Also- thanks for the rec's!
DeleteThe idea of having a reliable 'wine shop' makes sense to me - mostly because it gives people an avenue to get educated about wine as they purchase. I think blogs/online is good for people who understand the various varietals/regions/seasons, etc but could be intimidating for those who are wanting to learn more. I'm a bit on the fence as to whether they help small wine owners, I'd imagine it would have to do with how passionate they are for specific wines and requesting it through their distributor. This would largely be on a case by case basis.
ReplyDeleteI think finding the right wine shop is really important (especially for relatively unsophisticated consumers like me). I'm someone who wants to learn and to explore but I have always found purchasing wine to be quite an overwhelming experience.
ReplyDeleteFor instance, last week I went to Safeway. When I saw the amount of types of wine I felt completely overwhelmed and didn't know where to start. I ended up walking out with a few bottles of NZ. Sauvignon Blanc that I recognised.
This is where I feel a specialised wine merchant comes into its own. The merchant (if they genuinely care) can the consumer pick out something that they'll probably really enjoy. Back home, in Melbourne, I visit a small wine merchant who has always been passionate about getting drinkers to switch from beer to wine (and he has had a huge impact on me). He has taken the time to assist me and I have reciprocated as a consumer by going back to him to buy more wines.
I completely agree with Kate’s comments above relating to the Vibe of the shop too. I think the vibe of the shop (and the nature of the sales people) are critical. I have visited stores where the owners have been pretentious and I have had a terrible experience (and never returned). Great wine merchants though are a great addition to my purchasing decisions!