Anyone using Merchant 23

[Mark Cochard]

Anyone using or tried Merchant 23 http://blog.merchant23.com/distributor- ... ttle-guys-.
I posted this in the Seven Fifty thread but got no responses.

[Patrick D]

Looks very interesting. However I fear the more people will use it the odds of people keeping the 40-50% mark will quickly fade away.

[DominicRiccitello]

I haven't, but thanks! I actually just sent them a message to sell.

[Emily Richer]

Thanks for starting this conversation. I was looking into LibDib which I think may be a similar option: www.libdib.com

I'm looking for a way to say "yes" to out-of-state restaurant/retail buyers who want to sell my wines. Even with award-winning product, we can't get a local distributor to return calls for the easy money of processing the transaction. If these services are what I think they might be, this could be awesome for small producers.

Every winery would be happy to pay for the assistance of compliance and shipping and delivery, and if we could load our wines to ONE platform for multi-state trade buyer access, that would be very efficient--and fun.

In my experience, the traditional idea of a true distributor is a brand champion with connections who curates a list and really loves and promotes your product and builds your brand on a win-win basis. Sadly, in reality my experience in the industry shows the reality is much different. For a huge chunk of the ultimate sales price, it seems most distributors merely facilitate logistics and you have to fly in to do the sales work yourself or employ local folks, all of which is a bit out of reach for small producers who are paying for that work in the distributor markup already...

I'll look into both of these. I'm trying to ship to FLORIDA country club, and to a retail chain in AZ/NV/NM.

Hoping others will post their experience.

[Mark Cochard]

I looked at LibDib the other day. It looked like they are only in California and New York at the moment.

[Evan Pontoriero]

We have been looking at several. Funnily enough, Jacob from M23 lives about a block away from me. The pricing wouldn't work for us at the time we last talked. We are now looking at a friend's business that works with University Wine Clubs and seems to have a solution. I'll post more when I know more.

[William Gladstone]

Anyone using or tried Merchant 23 http://blog.merchant23.com/distributor- ... ttle-guys-.
I posted this in the Seven Fifty thread but got no responses.

WE were contacted if we would be the Hawaii state partner and I am looking for feedback from others who are working with them.
At this point the wineries they want us to distribute is a secret, the quantities are unknown, as is the prices.

is there anyone working with them who would care to comment?
or write to me directly if you prefer.
thanks
William

[Emily Richer]

WE were contacted if we would be the Hawaii state partner and I am looking for feedback from others who are working with them.
At this point the wineries they want us to distribute is a secret, the quantities are unknown, as is the prices.

OK, that's too bizarre--cannot imagine why their "book" needs to be a secret, unless they have nobody signed up yet. That's troublesome to hear. William, do you import into Hong Kong? What a wonderful place. I was there a few years ago and have shipped Virage wine directly to customers in HK a few times. The european style of my BDX blend fits with the educated buyer in that market, so it seems to me. It cracks me up that I can ship directly via FedEx to Hong Kong easier than shipping to most states in the US!!

[William Gladstone]

WE were contacted if we would be the Hawaii state partner and I am looking for feedback from others who are working with them.
At this point the wineries they want us to distribute is a secret, the quantities are unknown, as is the prices.

OK, that's too bizarre--cannot imagine why their "book" needs to be a secret, unless they have nobody signed up yet. That's troublesome to hear. William, do you import into Hong Kong? What a wonderful place. I was there a few years ago and have shipped Virage wine directly to customers in HK a few times. The european style of my BDX blend fits with the educated buyer in that market, so it seems to me. It cracks me up that I can ship directly via FedEx to Hong Kong easier than shipping to most states in the US!!

Hi Emily - nice to meet you - yes the woman who phoned me seemed experienced enough to talk the talk, yet not possessing the experience to realize how that would sound to a stable distributor. Everything was secretive - or not established. Then someone else was kind enough - perhaps on this thread - to point out the brains behind this venture had served time in a residence not of his choice - for some other fraud - I think it was real-estate - yes, now since the end of tax on wine it is easier to ship to H.K. - good Ruck

[Emily Richer]

someone else was kind enough - perhaps on this thread - to point out the brains behind this venture had served time in a residence not of his choice - for some other fraud - I think it was real-estate - yes, now since the end of tax on wine it is easier to ship to H.K. - good Ruck[/color]

OMG, well, glad to know before I go pursuing this any further.

It seemed a good idea, really, to create a one-stop shop for small producers like me. Persuading a distributor to return a call even when I have already secured ORDERS is near impossible. So would actually be nice to have a platform where a sale could be executed and logistics for delivery worked out. I mostly sell DTC but would love to do more out-of-state wholesale sales. Over the years you accumulate customers with connections. I had a Kansas customer wanted a full pallet, and I called four distributors, one who I had personal connection with, and still no callbacks. It was a real order too... my chef customer moved in with a retail store owner and he loved the wine. Alas, now they've broken up I started looking at M23 because a California retail buyer (where I sell DTT) moved to a new region (AZ) and offered the opportunity to sell into his stores--of course, he can't understand why I'm not jumping on it...

[CyrusAzari]

WE were contacted if we would be the Hawaii state partner and I am looking for feedback from others who are working with them.
At this point the wineries they want us to distribute is a secret, the quantities are unknown, as is the prices.

OK, that's too bizarre--cannot imagine why their "book" needs to be a secret, unless they have nobody signed up yet. That's troublesome to hear. William, do you import into Hong Kong? What a wonderful place. I was there a few years ago and have shipped Virage wine directly to customers in HK a few times. The european style of my BDX blend fits with the educated buyer in that market, so it seems to me. It cracks me up that I can ship directly via FedEx to Hong Kong easier than shipping to most states in the US!!

Hey everyone. I work at Merchant23.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/cyrus-azari-373abbb3/

The marketplace requires that you sign up to view. This is because we are trade to trade only - we do not want the public to see the wholesale prices. Accounts are free to make.

'Feel free to ask my anything, I'll answer questions the best I can

Emily - that is EXACTLY the problem our company solves. Jacob is a nose to the grindstone kind of guy, and really wants to be successful. If you have any questions please let us know, I want to help you be successful (a rising tide raises all boats)

Winery direct is also becoming the new thing, which is a great opportunity for small producers. I can link to some articles if anyone wants...

Warm regards,
Cyrus

[Andrew Morris]

Bump.

Interested in any feedback people have on working with LibDib or M23.

Thanks!

[Edward H. Earles]

I am resurrecting this old thread, to see if anyone has any comments. WTSO offers lots of wines from Merchant 23, which are unknown brands with no reviews. I'm guessing that these are off-brand offerings, originally directed at the restaurant trade, made hard-to-sell by COVID shutdowns, but it frustrates me that they (WTSO or Merchant 23) don't provide any information about the specific vineyards, winemakers, etc. I'm reluctant to buy a "pig-in-a-poke".

[A. Tzikas]

TOP for more feedback. Anybody?

[A. Tzikas]

I did some more digging on libdib.com. I attempted to sign up for the program, first entering my email address. A prompt came up stating that my email address "already existed". I was pretty sure that I had not previously signed up and I had no password to pug in. I asked for password help and was emailed a temporary password which I promptly used. I was taken to eRNDC page. Mystery solved! Five years ago, I signed on with Young's Market for distribution of some imported wines. A while back, Young's was bought out by RNDC. Apparently, libdib has been bought out by RNDC. Best of luck....