#202 - Buyer Spotlight: Total Wine & More
The Startup CPG Podcast
Startup CPG
4.9 • 642 Ratings
🗓️ 24 June 2025
⏱️ 69 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In this episode of the Startup CPG Podcast, Daniel Scharff is joined by Michael Lowry, Vice President of Global Spirit Sourcing, and Andrea Starr, Senior Director of Merchandising at Total Wine & More—the largest independent alcohol retailer in the U.S., with over 300 stores and $6 billion in annual sales.
Michael and Andrea pull back the curtain on how Total Wine thinks about brand discovery, merchandising strategy, customer engagement, and category trends — including the rise of non-alcoholic beverages and the emerging THC space. They share what makes a product stand out and why the right design can make or break a new launch. You’ll also learn what it takes to get on their shelves, how they stay nimble like a startup, and what catches their eye at trade shows.
Packed with actionable insights, category strategy tips, and behind-the-scenes examples, this episode is a must-listen for any startup founder, CPG marketer, or emerging brand looking to break into large-format retail.
🎧 Tune in now to learn how to make your brand shelf-ready for one of the most powerful retail platforms in beverage.
Listen in as they share about:
- Total Wine & More Overview
- Roles and Expertise
- Product Discovery & Sourcing
- Trends & Consumer Behavior
- E-Commerce & Digital Strategy
- Retail Strategy & Brand Fit
- How Total Wine Discovers New Brands
Episode Links:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andstarr/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-lowry-394b177a/
Don't forget to leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify if you enjoyed this episode. For potential sponsorship opportunities or to join the Startup CPG community, visit http://www.startupcpg.com.
Show Links:
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- Questions or comments about the episode? Email Daniel at podcast@startupcpg.com
- Episode music by Super Fantastics
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | The cool thing is when you look at the rosé set, there's, there's, which is the |
| 0:14.8 | assortment shelves, there's so many different bottles and and label styles. Some are more feminine. Some are more masculine. |
| 0:22.9 | There's like all sorts of stuff going on. So there's something for you, right? And I think that's the |
| 0:27.7 | cool thing about wine is that you can move side to side, stay in the grape that you like or in the |
| 0:33.6 | section that you like and experiment. Hello and welcome to another buyer spotlight on the startup CPG podcast. |
| 0:41.2 | I am so excited about today's guests because it's total wine and more. |
| 0:45.5 | The 300 store chain, the largest independent retailer of spirits and wine in the U.S. |
| 0:50.4 | We've got Michael Lowry, who's the VP of Global Spirit Sourcing and Andrea Starr, senior |
| 0:55.7 | director of merchandising. In today's episode, we're going to talk all about their store history, |
| 1:01.0 | how their consumers shop the stores, the role of e-commerce, how do they look for new brands and |
| 1:06.7 | spirits, beer, wine, snacks, and more. I am so excited they were able to join us. Hope you love |
| 1:11.8 | this episode. Here we go. All right, welcome to the show. I am so excited for brands to learn |
| 1:20.0 | all about total wine and more. There are so few national retailers out there when you're a brand |
| 1:26.0 | and you're trying to think like, how can I make my product available everywhere? This is one of those options and it's such an interesting one, |
| 1:32.6 | especially for people who are in kind of the Bev Alk mocktail space, but also for a lot of |
| 1:38.1 | CPG brands that are interested in that national coverage as well. A lot of people out there think |
| 1:42.8 | they would be a great fit for these |
| 1:44.6 | kind of stores. So thank you guys so much for joining us today. Honestly, I think this is one of the |
| 1:50.7 | biggest knowledge gaps. I think in the industry is brands understanding how total wine works and |
| 1:56.1 | how they can apply for you guys, how they can do well with you guys. So I really feel like it's a |
| 2:00.3 | huge privilege to get to bring this knowledge out there to our community. So maybe we could just |
| 2:05.2 | start with some intros. Michael, do you mind kicking us off? Not at all. Michael Lowry. I lead |
... |
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