Big Box Retailers.....Do you taste with your staff?

Cellar Rats (ITB)
1

We are a 30,000 squ. ft. store with 60% of the selling space devoted to wine, 30% to spirits, and 10% to beer.
In November of '08 I instituted a regular program of tasting the staff on product. New, high GP, and things that they just wanted to know about are being opened for their edification and the long term betterment of the team.

Does anybody else do this and what can you tell me about what you do?

2

Mark, not ITB obviously…

But, the bolt on liquor/wine/beer store at one of our Costcos here in Dallas tastes through all of the wines they will sell…except the higher dollar product like Vintage Champers, Caymus SS, etc. I have been there when the wholesaler has had a dozen bottles open from a $10 Aussie Shiraz to '05 O’Shaughnessey HM Cab. Just a handful of people in the store and they support less than 150 labels +/- so they can taste most of the wines to give an honest impression.

3

My program pulls the whole staff (of legal drinking age of course!) into a classroom environment where I open anywhere from 5 to 15 wines at one time. The thrust of the thing is usually to introduce them to wines that we want to sell for reasons of margin, but not exclusively. I run it like a class, explaining about varietal profiles and also looking for comments from them. It’s really like trying to expand the sales force as it were, because cashiers and stock persons have at least as much customer contact as myself and the other managers, and if they can sincerely speak out on behalf of a product that they really liked, that’s cool. It also makes a heavy impression on our customers.

4

Whereas, I am not quite sure of the reasoning of this thread, my staff tastes most of the wines that I taste. We generally all taste together.

5

It’s not as common a practice as you would think, Dan. The benefits all the way around though are fairly obvious.

If there are ITB retailers who don’t taste the staff on product, I’d be curious to know why as well.

6

I love that idea. I have been known to buttonhole anyone from the produce clerk to the mop boy when shopping … lots of the places I am familiar with taste with their staff, but these are generally smaller retailers and restaurants that are either closed at least one day per week, or can easily assemble their staff for a tasting. It must be much more difficult to arrange a tasting for the whole team at a large store where shifts probably overlap and there isn’t much down time. I applaud you for your efforts!

7

I doubt anyone would come here and say that, but I nevertheless would applaud their honesty.

Bigger stores obviously do not usually taste their staff.

I have 6 employees, so it is much easier to do so.

8

I know when I go to retail stores, big and small, most of the wine staff tastes through the wines I have. Not in a seminar situation (which I think is fantastic!) but there with me so I can tell the story first-hand and there is more of a focus.

I think if you’re selling wine, you need to taste everything in your store you can.

9

I’m impressed that you would take those efforts Mark. We have a local version of a Big Box Retailer here and we shopped there exclusively until we opened our shop. They used to have a knowledgeable staff. Recently, they let go one of their two wine experts and their prices have crept up to where we, as a small retailer, are cheaper on quality wines. We are also seeing an influx of new customers complaining they can’t get help or that nobody can talk about the wines. Might be a sign of the recession but customer service is where it’s at.
[ok.gif]

10

Thanks Randy.
In addition to the above mentioned enhancements we get from this staff training, there is team building. In the big box setting entry level employees can easily become disenchanted and I strive to avoid this by including them whenever possible and giving them some level of ownership of what goes on in the store. An $8/hr stock person or cashier who sits in on a tasting session with me gets, gives, and has something to say, which is kind of rare in big box retail. The goal is to empower them to be little salespeople on the floor, and remove some of the intimidation they might feel when customers ask questions. That should thereby enhance the customer experience.

11

I’ve got to applaud your efforts Mark! In this economy, as Randy has said, customer service will make the difference.

I shook down one of my major distributors last week for his lack of giving a shit. I ordered a keg of Stella and told them I need the correct tap to pour the beer. The next day a new tap handle was available, not the tap. My rep told me I needed to call the other office to see what I can do and that I should have taken care of this before Friday. [dash1.gif] I lost it and reminded him that I do not get a check each month from his company to do his job. Ironically, I was able to get the tap in my hands 15 minutes later after meeting with his boss. In the 2 1/2 years I’ve been up here, I’ve met their sales rep twice. These guys aren’t that small either considering they carry Budweiser and Diageo. When I took over, they had 6 tap handles and numerous bottled beers in my restaurant. After never seeing a rep (took them 1 1/2 years to first visit me and I had to call the owner just to get the visit) I took all of their products off my list. [1928_middle_finger.gif] I couldn’t even get a current price book as I was told the only thing that changes is price. [shock.gif] I have slowly brought a few items back (Bud and BL) but the reps still don’t care. I’m curious to see if the sales manager talks out of his ass too. [emot-words.gif]

12

You can get folks to work for $8 an hour?!?!? Here the guys on the street corners doing pick up work laugh at anything under $12.

13

Hey, it’s NJ. If they last we give 'em more. Actually the benefits program we have is very generous. I had a new start on his first day on Monday and I did a staff tasting. He thought it was the $hit.

14

The store I’ve worked part-time at for 19 years now used to be a family owned store. We always got to taste the latest wines and beers (within reason). We also were allowed to buy products at store cost, it encouraged us to buy and try things all the time, it worked great! Nothing better than being able to tell the customer you bought and liked the wine.

Now that we have been bought by a chain, we aren’t allowed to taste anything and get a whopping 15% discount which sends me to the competition to do my buying because their prices are usually lower by at least 15%. The competition also has a storage facility.

Of course the new owners can’t understand why sales fell off so much after they bought the store and always tell us it’s the sales staff.

I sure miss the ‘good ole days’