We’ve all seen them, and it’s amazing how easy it is to rent one, but I don’t think wine retailers need inflatable gorillas. Maybe an inflatable Pinot Noir stem, or an oversized 1970 Ridge Montebello, but not a gorilla.
However, the idea of drawing in customers sure has appeal. Retailers in Minnesota lament the summer as ‘beer season’ or ‘everybody’s at the cabin’ … but you may be able to do your own version of a gorilla:
- 20% off all summertime whites. Have a dot or a marker of some sort on all the light bodied, higher acid selections. This works wonders … I met a retailer from Florida who mops up the competition by doing this every year.
- “Baker’s dozen” sale … mix and match twelve and get one free (lowest price, of course). Do the math … this is, at most, just 8% off but you’d be surprised how well it works.
- Even better — buy six, get one free. This is, at most, 16% off — a fair discount for you to take for seven bottles going out.
- Sale on all screwtop wines, which skew toward the crisp, summertime selections anyhow. Call it a ’screwed up economy’ sale if you want to be sassy about it.
- 20% any pre-chilled wine all summer long! Watch you become THE STORE for the last minute shoppers on their way to a party. I think this could be HUGE for you, and it’s a good way to leverage cold box placements with your wholesalers.
- 15% off all wine when the temperature is over 90 degrees. Make a show of it. Buy one of those remote thermometers and build a display around it with signs and arrows and balloons. Then go 25% off if it’s over 95 degrees. Wouldn’t it be nice to have masses of wine shoppers on the hottest days of the year?
Filed under: Ideas - Retail
Good ideas, no matter what business you run it’s always good to generate a little buzz, and promotions like these are the perfect solution.