306 - The Largest Liquor Retailer You Never Knew About with Chris Blandford of Kroger

Bourbon Pursuit

Hobbies, Food, Arts, Leisure

4.9 • 866 Ratings

🗓️ 20 May 2021

⏱️ 60 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

We talk to the largest liquor retailer that you never knew about...Kroger. Yes, the huge grocery chain that has liquor stores adjacent to almost every location. When you add it up, it's thousands of square feet of retail space spread over hundreds of stores. We're joined by Chris Blandford, who is the Adult Beverage Field Specialist for Kentucky, Southern Indian, and Southern Illinois Kroger stores. We talk about the challenges of operating over 115 stores, distribution, competition, barrel picks, and of course allocation. Show Notes: This week’s Above the Char with Fred Minnick (@fredminnick) talks about spirits competitions. What is your fast food restaurant of choice on a road trip? How do you manage inventory for so many stores? How do you use data to predict what people will buy? What are the challenges of distribution? Talk about the store experience. Are larger or smaller stores more difficult to manage? How do you distribute products? What is the most stolen item? How do you approach pricing? Do you try to compete with pricing against the larger liquor stores? What is the method for allocated items? If Sazerac increased their pricing on Pappy, would there still be lotteries? Talk about your barrel picks. Do you have a favorite barrel pick? Any other challenges? What product doesn't move as well as you think it would? Are there any plans to grow? Will Kroger ever deliver or ship? Support this Podcast on Patreon

Transcript

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0:00.0	I actually want to say don't quote me on this by any means. I'm not the 84. Well, you realize this is a podcast.
0:05.0	I do know. You're literally getting quoted the entire time. Well, then don't hold me to it, Fred. Is that working?
0:19.5	This is episode 306 of Urban Pursuit, the podcast featuring news, reviews, and interviews,
0:25.9	with people making the bourbon whiskey industry happen.
0:28.8	I'm one of your host, Kenny Coleman, and before we start today's episode, talking about
0:32.6	the biggest liquor retailer you never knew about, here's your weekly Bourbon News Update.
0:38.2	Their European Union and the United States are now starting talks to address the U.S. steel tariffs that had a
0:43.2	huge impact on the bourbon industry. The agreement so far is that the European Union will not
0:48.1	double the tariffs on bourbon that was set to start on June 1st, but it will be delayed. This
0:53.2	gives distillers a bit more breathing room,
0:55.1	but the tariff is still in existence at 25% until the whole dispute is corrected. Distillaries in 36 states
1:01.3	exported whiskey in 2020, with Kentucky ranking second behind Tennessee. And total American whiskey exports
1:07.2	reported a similar downturn, declining 29% from 2018 to 2020, and no date was given
1:13.3	if the suggested 50% tariff will be imposed once again. Father's Day is right around the
1:18.2	corner, and Westward has a gift in mind already for you. Westward has unveiled a brand-new
1:23.0	whiskey-gifting concierge tool that will ask you a few questions and will suggest one of the
1:27.5	bottles in the Westward American single malt line. This portal will also allow you to pay
1:31.6	directly and have it shipped to nearly 30 different states. Go to westward whiskey.com
1:36.4	for more details. Now moving on to bourbon release news. Buffalo Trace has announced
1:41.5	the annual release of Wellerful Proof and Craft Your Perfect Bourbon.
1:45.4	Buffalo Trace fills its weeded bourbon barrels at 114 proof, hence the name Full Proof.
1:50.1	This will have a suggested retail price of $50, while Craft Your Perfect Bourbon is aged for eight years,
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