What is it like in the states where grocery stores carry wine?
There is a petition right now to have the city vote on it and we have one in the store for people to sign but I really don't want to carry wine unless they give us a full time wine expert because you know people will be asking and we'll be like ummmmm that one? maybe?
(also a new store opened that apparently sells underwear - we are not wal-mart okay, we should focus on groceries, i swear the more they branch the worse it gets)
anyway we get out of state visitors all the time (university town) and we tell them nope, you're not getting wine on a sunday - if we can sell wine in the store, will we sell it on a sunday? the liquor stores have to be closed that day.
i'm a bit confused but mostly curious about what it's like in other states
I don't really understand what you're asking. Wine's like any product. People come, they buy it, and they leave. It gets stolen more than medicine but less than beer and spirits.
And what kind of retarded law bans wine sales on Sunday?
In my state we recently allowed alcohol on Sundays. But before that, no, we couldn't sell it. We just had a lot of signs up and if people were too stupid to realize the system blocked the sale for us. I'm sure no one will ask what wines are good, no one does that here.
Nobody's ever asked me what a good 'anything' is. Doubt wine would be different.
Your mystery shopper might. I don't drink so I'm SOL. I know where my wines are but that's all. We have a manager who seems to try every alcoholic beverage we get, I usually just sent the questions his way.
At our store, we've got two full aisles of wine, plus a wine consultant. Doesn't mean much to the rest of the workers, just more ID checks and more sales.
The OP is asking about stores that carry wine, period... not just alcohol sales on Sunday.
Believe it or not, some states, like Tennessee, do not permit the sale of wine in grocery stores. Archaic, I know.
There are now strong petition drives going on, which Kroger heartily endorses, to change the laws so that our stores down here can finally stock/sell wine.
It's all kinda complicated. You have a lot of people resistant to change, and think it's morally wrong, then you have the strong presence of existing liquor store owners that fear that their revenues will decline.
On the other hand, a good number of people think it's ridiculous that you can't just pop into a Kroger and pick up a bottle of wine when needed, and would like Tennessee to join up with the rest of the 21st century.
I don't really have any advice to give but i find it weird that some states DON'T allow wine sales in grocery stores. Here, both Kroger and Walmart has a huge wine selection.
It's just like any other product. If you don't drink it yourself try to find someone who does and have them answer the customers question. Normally you'll want to recommend a chardonnay, at least that's what i prefer.
The register will not allow you to sell the product if it's not the correct times for them to be purchased. Remember to ID people who look less than 40, just like any other age restricted product.
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Would you like fries with th... I mean, your milk in a bag?
I don't really have any advice to give but i find it weird that some states DON'T allow wine sales in grocery stores. Here, both Kroger and Walmart has a huge wine selection.
Yeah... it's really weird that grocery stores can't sell wine in certain states. They leave it to the liquor stores, and specialty wine stores for that sort of thing, even though beer is perfectly legal, and the hours of sale for beer are even broader here in TN than they were in my home state. It's all very strange, but pretty liberal if you're a beer drinker... but that's a story for a different time.
For the original poster asking, some stores have wine tastings where there is an expert on hand. These are usually in your marketplace stores etc. where they make it a fancy affair.
For the regular schmuck like perhaps you or I... not many people are going to ask you much about wine. They usually know exactly what they are looking for, like a Pinot Noir... or a Shirraz... or a Merlot... maybe a Cabernet Sauvignon (reds), or a Chardonnay which is your typical white wine that is served chilled. Another popular white wine is Pinot Grigio... made popular by some TV show I forget.
Pro tip: Merlot is pronounced "Mer-low"... don't look like a dolt and say "Mer-lot" ;) Redneck girls say "Mer-lot"... it's hilarious.
Also... don't forget White Zinfandel. It's a sweet, super fruity, berry wine that's a blush (kinda pink looking) and is very popular in your more "non-wine drinking" crowd. Think slightly classier version of Boones Farm... but not really.
It's going to vary from county to county within each state. Where I'm from we can sell beer and wine coolers hot or cold from within the store. Other alcoholic beverages have to be sold from a separate building with its own entrance. A lot of times the building will be connected to the regular grocery store and is accessable from within grocery store for things like stocking but the public has to use the outside entrance.
The register will not allow you to sell the product if it's not the correct times for them to be purchased. Remember to ID people who look less than 40, just like any other age restricted product.
I've worked overnight and it refused the sale from 3 to 6 or 5:30 in the morning I think. Kind of sad that I had to find that out.
and in TN where the law is being discussed, we have to ID everyone and we get people giving us attitude about it all the time. It's been the law since 2007, grow up and get a valid ID or get your friend with one to buy the beer.
Lot of money in the wine, liquor and beer sales. Definitely helps the store out, even though it's a pain to stock (I'm a CC, but one time there wasn't enough people in the morning and I and the SM stocked the wine.)
I love when customers ask me about what products to get. I like being asked for my opinion, even if it's an uninformed opinion, rather than the usual when a customer just wants to know where a product is and just barks out the item at me, like I'm some sort of iPhone app that responds to voice commands.
With wine I'll ask what kind of event or dinner they're having, how many people are expected, that sort of thing. That makes it seem like my answer is going to take this information into account. Some wines go good with certain dishes, I think I saw that on TV. So I'll nod and stroke my beard thoughtfully, then walk a ways down the aisle as if looking for a specific wine. Then I'll appear to have found the one I was looking for, pick a more expensive bottle off the shelf and say "This would do very well" with total confidence. If they look hesitant I'll pick out another, perhaps cheaper or more expensive, but also pretty much at random.
I haven't yet had to make up some crap about "nutty textures" or "with a hint of oak" or talking about the vintage like I have any idea about what years were good or whatever, but I might do. Sweep the floors often enough, you become a wine expert!
Lot of money in the wine, liquor and beer sales. Definitely helps the store out, even though it's a pain to stock (I'm a CC, but one time there wasn't enough people in the morning and I and the SM stocked the wine.)
I love when customers ask me about what products to get. I like being asked for my opinion, even if it's an uninformed opinion, rather than the usual when a customer just wants to know where a product is and just barks out the item at me, like I'm some sort of iPhone app that responds to voice commands.
With wine I'll ask what kind of event or dinner they're having, how many people are expected, that sort of thing. That makes it seem like my answer is going to take this information into account. Some wines go good with certain dishes, I think I saw that on TV. So I'll nod and stroke my beard thoughtfully, then walk a ways down the aisle as if looking for a specific wine. Then I'll appear to have found the one I was looking for, pick a more expensive bottle off the shelf and say "This would do very well" with total confidence. If they look hesitant I'll pick out another, perhaps cheaper or more expensive, but also pretty much at random.
I haven't yet had to make up some crap about "nutty textures" or "with a hint of oak" or talking about the vintage like I have any idea about what years were good or whatever, but I might do. Sweep the floors often enough, you become a wine expert!
XD
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Would you like fries with th... I mean, your milk in a bag?
I haven't yet had to make up some crap about "nutty textures" or "with a hint of oak" or talking about the vintage like I have any idea about what years were good or whatever, but I might do. Sweep the floors often enough, you become a wine expert!
There ya go. If you start talking like that in the Krogers... you're going way over your pay grade. Anyone expecting that kind of talk already knows more than you, and is just being a gas-bag that point.
They might know more, but they might not know they know more! And truly, a lot of people buying wine or whatever have no idea what they're doing. When you have your uniform on and look like you know what you're doing, you become Authority. So speak authoritatively. Often people don't really want "the best" wine or whatever, they just want to not have to make the decision themselves and will delegate it to some authority figure. Even if that authority figure mops up urine for a living. They don't know that, do they? Unless they remember your name tag and read the restroom logs and make the connection, and at that point they might as well be some sort of Sherlockian super-customer.
The register will not allow you to sell the product if it's not the correct times for them to be purchased. Remember to ID people who look less than 40, just like any other age restricted product.
I've worked overnight and it refused the sale from 3 to 6 or 5:30 in the morning I think. Kind of sad that I had to find that out.
and in TN where the law is being discussed, we have to ID everyone and we get people giving us attitude about it all the time. It's been the law since 2007, grow up and get a valid ID or get your friend with one to buy the beer.
Policy says to id everyone, but the law says they don't have to show id if they look over 50. So carding everybody is to cover our bases and not because it's law
