Things To Consider When Setting Up a Liquor Store

Launching your own liquor/wine store can be a rewarding and lucrative business venture that allows you to be your own boss. Unless you already have experience in the industry, though, you might feel lost or not know where to start. Like most businesses, a liquor/wine store needs to be set up and managed properly to ensure it's success. Here we'll take a look at some of the things to consider when setting up a liquor/wine store.

Check Competition

 

One of the biggest mistakes newcomers to the retail liquor/wine sales business make is setting up their shop in a highly competitive location. Seeing other liquor stores around an area is kind of double-edged sword. It shows you that plenty of willing customers are around for the stores to be in business, but it also means your store will have less customers as a direct result of the nearby businesses. Take your time to carefully choose a store location in a highly populated area with minimal competition. One or two liquor/wine stores here and there probably isn't going to negatively affect your sales significantly, but there shouldn't be any more than this.

Shelving

 

Without the right shelving, your customers won't be able to see all of the liquor/wine products your store has to offer. As a result, you'll lose sales and more importantly - customers. So, what's the best type of shelving to use in a liquor/wine store? Basic gondola shelving seems to be a popular choice. It offers easily adjustable shelves to create a snug fit with the products, it can can be moved around the store, and gondola shelving simply looks nice when set up in a store. Most experienced store owners will agree that there's no better choice than gondola shelving.

You can also save some money by purchasing reconditioned gondola shelving for your liquor/wine store instead of new models. Contrary to what some people may believe, reconditioned gondola shelving looks and functions the same as new ones do. In fact, it's doubtful you could tell the difference when comparing a new and reconditioned gondola side by side.

City Planning

 

Before you even thing about starting a liquor/wine store, you'll need to check with the city planning offices to determine whether or not it's a viable option. Some cities limit the number of liquor/wine stores in a particular area, and if they've already reached this amount, you'll have to choose another location for your store.