TRIP REPORT
WHOLESALING LESSONS THROUGHOUT THE YEARS
In between talk of trends and what the beverage alcohol industry should expect this year , four executives from different wholesalers shared their advice on lessons they learned throughout the years .
“ When I came into the family business , we had a sales manager who was a throwback to the prohibition days ,” began Robert Harmelin , Executive VP , Industry Relations , Allied Beverage Group . “ His advice to me was that whenever I walk into a restaurant or bar , don ’ t go in through the front door — go in through the back . Because what you ’ ll see going on in the back will tell you a lot about what ’ s going on in the front .”
“ This is the golden age of selling because of what suppliers and wholesalers are doing ,” said Charlie Merinoff , Executive Vice Chairman of Southern Glazer ’ s Wine & Spirits . “ We used to just serve information in a teacup to our customers . But now , we build a firehose with all of this information on who the suppliers and brands are . It ’ s the role of the salesperson to know the account and help customers select certain brands and bring them to life .”
One of the most important things salespeople can do in order to sell well is to go out and see the customer in person . As Harmelin put it : “ You can ’ t phone it in , you can ’ t email it in — you need to go out and see your customers .”
WSWA GETS COMPETITIVE
During the Access LIVE event , WSWA also announced the winner of its 2024 Brand Battle competition : Quintaliza Tequila . Beating out six category winners , the Miami-based craft brand ’ s flagship product is a five-month tequila reposado aged two months in American whiskey barrels and then three months in coffee barrels , the company states .
The 2024 edition of Brand Battle began in early January with multiple competitors vying for wins in the categories of vodka and gin , tequila and mezcal , wine , whiskey and scotch , RTD / hard seltzers , innovation and miscellaneous , according to WSWA . The championship round was held Tuesday , January 30 , on the Main Stage . The winner was chosen by a panel of judges as well as conference attendees , who used a special QR code to cast their votes from the Brand Battle audience .
Another contest highlight at the event was the 2024 Best in Show Wine and Spirits Tasting Competition , which pitted nearly 400 products in blind , head-to-head tastings to pick the finest , most flavorful drinks in 35 categories .
The contest began on Sunday , January 28 , when judges evaluated all entries to award silver , gold , and double gold designations , WSWA stated . Products were judged completely blind — liquid only , no brands or packaging — with each product identified to evaluators by a three-character code .
Entries winning double gold in the first round advanced to the second round on Monday during which the full panel tasted all 168 products to pick the “ Best of Show ” winners . All told , 11 wines and 24 spirits were selected by the panel for the highest distinction .
THE PRESSING ISSUE OF ORGANIZED RETAIL CRIME
In the closing keynote of WSWA ' s Access Live , Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America President and CEO Francis Creighton sat down with FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate to discuss organized retail crime ( ORC ) and cyber security , two topics faced by all three tiers of the beverage alcohol industry .
As stated in a news release sent to Beverage Wholesaler , Creighton pointed out that ORC isn ' t simple shoplifting . Rather , it involves large-scale theft of products that are then sold illegally either in brickand-mortar stores or online .
" Organized crime is something the FBI has a long history of combating ," responded Abbate , " and we go after those enterprises and try to take them down ." According to the Deputy Director , the agency has made headway on the issue and will continue focusing on the problem .
Organized retail crime is more than a law enforcement issue — it ' s also an industry problem , and it impacts all three tiers , WSWA stated . While the current trend began in 2018 , it escalated precipitously during 2020 and 2021 , when widespread masking enabled thieves to hide their faces .
In an earlier panel discussion , Natalie Shield with Kearney noted that up to 30 % of consumers across all categories will abandon a purchase entirely when faced with a locked-up product .
As wholesalers continue to navigate the rebounding of sales post-pandemic , many industry experts throughout Access LIVE predicted that the future is still bright . Beverage alcohol consumption is not going anywhere anytime soon , but in order to survive , companies need to adapt to changing consumer preferences . •
6 Beverage Wholesaler • Summer 2024 www . beveragewholesaler . com