Employees buying up limited releases

Looks like there's a couple of subjects here - one, employees buying products the same (bottle limit, retail price, etc) as any other customer. Two - employees scarfing up the "good stuff" off the truck and/or snagging all of it before it even hits the shelves. I don't get that uptight about beer, so neither really bother me that much. But in terms of "fairness" I think the second approach is a problem since everyone doesn't get a fair crack at a limited release or rare beer. And I really don't pay that much attention to begin with, so even if something rolled in I probably wouldn't know any better anyway. In general I am pretty content to buy whatever's there, might ask for something if I remember, and be content with an answer "no...we don't have it". Why would anybody say "no...we're out because the employees cherry picked it all" - that seems just an outright dumb thing to say to a customer. Frankly, most of the stores around here the beer workers are minimum wage, part-time kids with no bennies just trying to put a few bucks in their pockets. Unless they treat me rudely, I'm not going to give them a hard time about anything.

It comes down to the policy of the individual store or establishment. And generally speaking, happy employees are certainly the best ambassadors you can have. So if the "edge" is that an employee knows when something hits the shelf, so be it but it should be up to the manager or owner to set any rules. No matter how it is handled, somebody will have their panties in a bunch over it. I haven't seen it myself, but some jackwad following a delivery truck around and just blatantly hoarding would bother me a whole lot more - beer is for drinking, not collecting trophies. Then again, from the store's perspective that type is dropping a ton o' cash, so it is all a matter of perspective.

 

I would boycott a store that never put special releases on the shelf if there was alternative. I don't care if odds are I won't score in the other store, it's the principal. I spend good money at my bottle shops, probably in the top 1-5% of all customers. If they think some part time employee is more worthy of a special release, that's on them. If you have a full time career manager or something one or two bottles is fine.

 

Since this does not seem to be a problem at my go-to store, I have no problem with employees being allowed to buy an allocation. I would do no discount, that way they have to "want" it just as much as the customers.

Not allowing employees buy the limited releases seems a little contradicting to another view point on BA, that beer store employees should be knowledgeable and enthusiastic about craft beer. So you want employees who know and care about craft beer but are not able to buy the special/limited releases? ... something about eating and having cake...

 

You couldn't be more wrong. I go above and beyond to keep my employees happy.
It sounds like your manager is keeping employees happy at the expense of the customrs. That is just bad business.

It may be just beer to you. But to the owner of the store it is never just a customer. Not if they want to stay in business for very long.

 

anyway its been fun guys. Time to go to work and tell 500 more people we dont have hopslam yet.
and when it finally comes in, you think I'm gonna sit there and watch it all sell out while I get none of it?
aw hell nah

 

I don't really care who buys it first, whether it's employees or someone else. I'll shop at the stores I think have good prices, good customer service and allow me access to special releases. Those that do that will get most of my business. It's a symbiotic relationship. I don't expect every special release, but if I'm always striking out at your store I'll probably shop somewhere else.

I would just say you ARE going to let your employees buy up a lot of the special releases at least keep it to yourselves. It's never good to tell a customer who missed out that your employees bought it all. Fundamentally, it doesn't make a difference who bought it, but the optics aren't good.

 

we've been open for years and doing pretty awesome, dude.

 

Remind me not to shop at your store.

 

This is why the normal guy can't get beer.this is everything that's wrong with today's beer marketplace.people buy cases of shit just to say they have it

 

At my store, employees pay the exact same as the public. Employees are customers. they wait in line and pay with the same dollar bills as the public. When we count the till at the end of the day, we can't tell an employees $20 from one that you spent. At my store, we have no time for hoarding, entitled whiners! (Employees or the public). We don't allow employees to buy limited releases until at least a month after release. So, that basically means no sales to them. The only reason for this rule is to shut people the hell up!

 

I should have mentioned that my post wasn't aimed at anyone in particular ,but everyone in general. Every release someone gets upset.
A while back there was a post about someone chasing trucks for days to grab bottles and another about someone pitching a lawnchair and sitting outside the store hours before it opened . Maybe it's an age thing but it will be a cold day in hell before I put that much effort into buying a bottle or two.
While we're on the subject should employees of the brewery be allowed to purchase limited releases ??

 

It doesn't sound like you have the correct disposition for retail. Perhaps you should re-think your career path.

 

It would depend on the brewery. If you are attached in any way to the making of the beer, absolutely. If you are a permanent full time employee absolutely. If it's a brewery only release with ample supply, absolutely.

In the above case, many stores get a single case and it may not hit the shelves at all. If it's a brewery release (created by the local team) I'm guessing there is quite a bit and the ratio of employee bottles to customers is trivial at best.

 

I usually do not agree with you, but this time I agree.

The employees are people and possibly craft beer fans too. They should be allowed to buy some beer. If that leaves customers with none, that is a risky thing the manager needs to figure out as you will loose customers solely because you never have limited releases (whether because you sell out fast, do not order it, or keep it all for employees) for whatever reason.

 

omg how many times did I say we dont hoard. its not fair for you all to think we dont even deserve 1 bottle for all the crap we gotta deal with. go apply for a part time job and get yours too. I've given many customers bottles that I was saving. I go out of my way to make my customers happy. but you'll never please 100% of the people 100% of the time. Everyone here (including myself) has entitlement issues here.
All I'm sayin is we as employees deserve something, you're saying we deserve nothing.
we're never going to agree.

 

Wait... hold on a second. You got this backwards. Are you really claiming the performing of the most basic and primary functions of your job is grounds for special treatment over the customers that pay the bills? Now there is your entitlement buddy.

 

You deserve something other than your pay check for doing your job?
Now who has entitlement issues?

 

what store in NJ?

 

A store near me is completely biased on what they put on the floor and who they let buy limited stuff. My buddy shops there and they tell him what comes in and he gets to buy it etc etc. I don't shop there often because they charge like 2-3 bucks more per for everything and I think it's ridiculous. But when I do go they pretend to not know what Im talking about when I ask for anything limited and since they keep it all in the back I can't do anything about it... Except not shop there which is my course of action. They are young guys so I guess it is what it is and not having ethics or morales is fine w them. I will continue to shop down the street and save a few bucks even if I can't get any Palate Wrecker!!!