Should Bottle Shops Allow Holds?

Some stores sure try around here. One place seems to jack every special limited release bomber up 5 bucks (from other stores in the area). I just laugh and move on, usually finding it elsewhere for cheaper.

 

You can usually look at stores Facebook pages without being on Facebook. I do it all the time lately to make sure I'm not missing out on stuff. Of course, we won't get alerts like Facebook members do. Stores holding for randoms on Facebook would be frustrating though if I'm a regular.

 

Bottle shops should do whatever is best for their business. Having written that it's bad business to not reward your loyal customers (IMO).

 

Even if you got a dozen cases of Bcbs as an example and jacked it up a few bucks a bottle, it's still shit money. You can't live or survive as a business on that, or connecting it to buying others beers from that brewery. You might as well rewards your frequent customers at a good price and move on. Making an extra $1000 on specialty brews seems ridiculous.

 

That’s what it is. I may see that post hours, if not a day later, and therefore I’m shit out of luck. And, haha, before someone suggests it, I’m not joining Facebook. It’s bad enough I signed up for Instagram to get access to the “my story” icon. A necessary evil, imo, to properly stalk breweries.

 

Can't blame you, I don't have any of it. I get all my info from here and stalking Facebook without joining.

 

In the Exact same boat man.

 

In-house holds I get. You come in the store and they either tell you X beer is available or soon to be available and they reach out to their local customers first...that’s solid.

You make a post on social media and then randoms start “claiming” bottles...that’s questionable. That rewards the so-called truck chasers imo. People who regularly come in the store and spend their money there should get first shot. If people go to the store enough, social media shouldn’t mean squat.

 

Bottle shops, being for-profit businesses, have probably figured out best practices for getting and keeping customers, which is their primary concern. They may run the risk of running some off, but the bottom line ultimately dictates their decisions. Seems pretty obvious. It's not like they're the government rationing something.

 

I'm pretty adament that business owners should be allowed to run their business the way they see fit. If you think you can run it better, put your money where your mouth is and open up your own place.

 

There was an amateur painter in Spain who asked to restore an old painting of Jesus, this here was the result and to this day it makes me laugh.

https://www.pri.org/stories/2012-08-25/amateur-restoration-botches-jesus-painting-spain

 

The Sanctuary of Mercy in Borja, Spain (owner of the painting) is laughing too... all the way to the bank. While there was initially talk of how to reverse the damage, the botched restoration has become a tourist sensation, generating some €50,000 to the church, as well as other charities, by 2016. (source: wikipedia).

 

I was in a store where the phone was ringing off the hook with people asking "Do you have any Pappy? Pappy!"

The manager was getting increasingly frustrated with the interruptions and his "price" was going up every time the phone rang. $799... $899... $999.

I guess I was looking at him like "hmmm" and he said "I usually just sell these around my cost to our regulars who spend money every week with us, but if one of these trolls wants to make us $900 profit then we will take their money."

It's kind of silly to think that if something is truly rare that by "calling around" someone is going to hook you up, if you've never met them or spent money there before. Beer is a little different than spirits to me because it doesn't take decades to make, but I think you guys saying that private bottle shops should "have" to sell you something is pretty silly. Take your business elsewhere, if you don't like how they do it.

 

Ding, Ding, Ding

 

I saw a bottle of pappy in a store once, I think the price tag was 1500. Obviously they checked out the secondary market before pricing. I just want to see a mashup of reactions when people see that price tag. I have no FOMO for anything priced that high and no expectation for them to sell it at MSRP. Can't say it isn't a little disappointing to see true secondary market prices in a store though.

 

I work in an area that is 20 minutes from the closest bottle shop. It takes 10-12 minutes to get from my desk to my car. So people who work "out here" (and there are thousands of us) would be at a disadvantage to those who 1) don't work or 2) live very close to certain shops.
We also don't have access to social media or personal e-mail.

Ever been to a San Diego bottle shop?

Heck there are places here that jack up their prices because they believe their customers will pay it for limited stuff.

 

Never been out that way. There's a shop local to me that pumps every limited BA stout up 3-5 dollars and sells them at a 1 bottle limit. I don't frequent those kinds of shops much.

 

They are just banking on Lawyer "A" needing a last minute gift for Lawyer/Doctor/Congressman/Judge "B"... and sending out intern/secretary/clerk/wife /husband out with the Black Card, to go find literally anything that says "Pappy" or "Van Winkle" on 12/23 (or after closing something big or getting your bonus).

The person on the hunt has no clue what it is (or what it entails when you call a liquor store and their eyes go googly since you're the 100th person to call that day) and they quote you $1500. Since it's not your money and you're just trying to get this damn bottle, you fly over there, park illegally, swipe that card and scribble the name, and now you can move on with your day/holiday.

There's no bottle of bourbon worth more than $200, it's all for show. It's quite a bit like these Game of Thrones single malts floating around: no one who regularly buys scotch (or in the Pappy case, bourbon) is actually buying these good, but unbelievably overpriced products. They're 100% preying on people who are trying to buy a nice gift. I'm sure it happens in electronics and other things too this time of year, but its very predatory in the spirits aisle this time of year.

 

Holding for a good/frequent customer is fine in my book, but just one or two bottles really. If it is a very popular beer the hold should only last a couple days at most (unless previously agreed upon for longer), after if the bottles aren't paid and picked up the shop can sell them.

 

Damn bro, who mentioned the gubment?