Honestly Paul- I think for you, not announcing the releases would hurt your business. I understand that this is to reward the regulars, but the only reason someone constantly in the top 20 would say this is because they have anything to worry about.
I consider myself a very regular customer, but I would be lying if i said a special release did not incentivize me to buy more.
Your bottle shop is the only shop that I buy beer from. First and foremost because of the selection. The BRC is the second reason that I like going there. I've been able to get some great beers (including side projects) that I probably wouldn't be able to get elsewhere.
I am usually in the running for the releases, but not knowing would cause a gap in fairness with people that have unlimited income to spend on alcohol. It just makes me buy more beer sooner that i would end up buying regardless. And it keeps me coming back to your shop and builds anticipation and excitement knowing what special release is coming next.
I think it would be odd to change the current system. Seems to be working fine the way it is.
Hopefully the derivation release will at least remain as planned.
Thanks for the input. I personally enjoy announcing ahead of the release as I enjoy the excitement that people get out of it too. The Derivation will not be changed, I will announce as soon as I have the release date. It would not be fair to switch it up in the middle of release.
Yeah the BRC for you guys is for sure a huge money maker for your strores. I would be lying if I said the BRC didn't entice me to spend hundreds of dollars at your place in an effort to score some rare SP releases. BTW here's my credit card number. Take what you need and I'll be by to get my Derivation bottles. :)
I've thought about this a lot and had another idea come up the other day. Instead of using just using the 'top customers' for each release, point balances were used and were calculated for each one (similar to now - possibly a point/$ with a higher allocation being used for the same type/brand of beer so if it was a limited Founder's beer, Founder's purchases would ring up at a 2x balance for that one release). Then, points were deducted for those releases people choose to get on with a value being based on the rarity of the beer (rarer beers would deduct more from the balance). This way, people would only accept beers they really wanted and would allow more members of the BRC access to beers since some there may be some passing to keep their points for a more limited beer down the road. I know this would be quite a bit more work, but just wanted to put out another option. If you spend on a certain beer type/brand (brand would be easier, but type of beer might be a better option to allow people to have a chance for their type of beer that they spend the most on such as IPA, barleywine, etc), then you could possibly get those related limited releases if you saved your points for them since your points balance would be skewed toward them but would allow other people more access to other limited releases instead of the top 20 people always getting everything and the rest just hoping.
That being said, I think not announcing them would be the better way of doing things. Those with large amounts to spend on alcohol will anyway and it would remove the 'splurging' people from the pool allowing those who normally shop there the better chance at getting releases.
You should just do what you need to do to sell out your inventory as quickly as possible. That's why you are in business, to make money and provide a service. The beer scene has turned into a bunch of whiners and hoarders who think every beer their heart desires should be sitting on their shelf. Here's an idea, if you really want a beer go to the store and buy it. Hopefully it works out and you get your beer. If it doesnt, oh well, that's just how it works some time. The only thing a shop needs to do is put a limit on rare releases so the hoarders and truck chasers don't buy out a whole inventory in one swoop.
As someone who has been in the top and bottom of the list I really think the announcement should be disbanned. I myself am 100% guilty of checking rhe blog and dropping $$$ when a beer I want is even mentioned.
I personally think its a little off putting that sometimes all of the beer is released through brc and not half brc half first come first serve. Since I dont come in as often anymore I tend to take a majority of my business else where solely for the fact that I'm so far behind in purchases now and side project releases that im not even remotely interested in have made the brc that much more competitive.
Jason, Yes, our system is not capable of so many options. We are getting a new POS system in the near future and it should be an upgrade and their might be more options.
"I personally think its a little off putting that sometimes all of the beer is released through brc and not half brc half first come first serve."
I do not announce it, but some of each release ends up on the shelf for people to find. I don't want to announce first come because we have found out that just leads to the people running all around town to get as many bottles from every store in town and many do not by anything else form the store. I have done some surprise releases first come first served, but I think that is the worst method for everyone and do not plan to do that very often.
I will usually wait a week or even two and start putting bottles on the shelf. People are usually done running around town and just looking for the cherries at that point. A regular shopper in the store will find it on the shelf. Somebody not looking for it, just shopping for their weekly 6 pack or whatever.
48 bottles of the Side Project Merci were sold over the course of about 3 weeks on the shelf. Bottles appeared on the shelves of all 4 of our locations for regular shoppers to find. I think that is a great way to support people that are not on the top of the BRC, but are in the store every week.
" Since I dont come in as often anymore I tend to take a majority of my business else where solely for the fact that I'm so far behind in purchases now. "
Lol.
This is case and point why the BRC and announcing the releases are a good thing.
Jake R - it is like every other method, some good and some bad. There are people that spend more, but as you can see from the comments and emails I have seen, we lose some customers. Some get frustrated and it is understandable if they do not get limited releases. Some of the release we only get 12 bottles, it is just a losing situation. You have the person at #13 that did spend a lot of money and still did not get a bottle, you could lose a good customer that way too.
Just something to think about- most of the people voting no on announcing the releases likely aren't spending money in your stores anyways... so take this poll with a grain of salt.
It would be more beneficial to do this survey through in-store customer beer purchases and visits..
Yes, that is true. Just as if I asked people to vote if we should keep the BRC, people getting beer would vote yes and people not would say get rid of it. I am not sure I will get a clear answer, there really is no right answer.
I personally am a fan of the announcements, it creates hype and I spend more $$ than I should towards getting a rare beer which should be a positive for the TWCP. If I was honest about the BRC as a whole, I am not a big fan as only the bigger releases, Side Project, Perennial, and 2nd shift tend to be the only ones that drop off beers in large quantities that allow for a larger part of the BRC to obtain them. That being said, Side Project has clearly elevated the BRC as these beers are the most highly sought after beers in the area, IMO, so to go to unannounced releases I think you will find the TWCP sales drop off. Unfortunately, their is no right answer as every large liquor store in the area does it differently, some have clubs, others are first come first serve, others take half holds. The only differentiating part is that TWCP has Side Project which tends to draw additional $$ when announcements are made and everyone knows TWCP has the best prices in town. My two cents.
I think it comes down to what the twcp brc defines as a "loyal" customer The amount of times a person shows up at the store regardless of dollars spent or how much someone spends each month, year etc.. This answer may be different for every business as are they a retailer of service business.
Full disclosure - when TWCP started up the BRC, I stopped shopping there. Prior to that I would usually stop in once a month and shop there specifically because of the notices/blog posts as well as a solid selection. I'm not a big whale hunter/hoarder but there are a couple yearly releases that I really look forward to that I enjoyed purchasing at TWCP. Once the BRC started up I was instantly disqualified for the limited releases since I'm just not a heavy drinker and mostly homebrew anyway. Sure some end up getting released to the shelves but I don't have the time to be swinging by a few times a week just for a chance. Why do that when I can just go to another of the many quality stores in the area. Heck, some of those stores will even take reservations over the phone still making it much easier for me personally.
All of that said - I still subscribe to TWCP postings. To my knowledge, I'd consider TWCP as one of the top contributors to the STL beer community regarding effort and knowledge. It probably doesn't sit that well that I look for a TWCP post and then go to another store to make my purchases, but that's what I do. So personally, I'm majorly in favor of keeping posts like that going.
There's some other suggestions in this comments section about how best to go about allocating limited releases. All in all, it comes down to what's best for your business. Does the BRC increase revenue by encouraging people to buy more to try and get higher on the lists? Is there an impact to foot traffic and sales for less hardcore craft beer enthusiasts? It definitely introduces some variables.
Anywho - the BRC stinks (in my opinion) but the posts about what's hitting the STL market are awesome.
IMO the best way is to have a small announcement window with a decent size sales window...
If someone can come in a few days/week notice and spend more than someone has in the previous 2-3 months then my guess is the person that has been going frequently for the 2-3 months hasnt spent very much.
In response to "Full disclosure". I am sorry to hear that you stopped shopping at our store. Obviously no store can get all of the business, we all try our best to get the biggest piece of the pie we can, obviously. There are many factors that contribute to your shopping habits - price, service, selection, freshness, convenience, and even things like loyalty programs. The grocery stores have the convenience factor locked up and since they have gotten into craft beer, limited beers have been spread thinner for accounts such as ours. There is not more FW Parabola coming, it is just going to more accounts now. The BRC was set up to try to get more of people's "everyday" purchases from the grocery stores. It is a tough battle because of their convenience, even if they are more expensive. I am a fan of more beer stores in St. Louis, that is good for our craft beer scene. The grocery stores hinder this progress as they take a lot of the business but only carry core brands decreasing sales in smaller specialty beer stores. Grocery stores carry some very good brands like Bells, Founders and Odells and you can always find something to your liking since you are already shopping there. But they do not carry the selection of Belgian, German, Danish craft, Canadian craft.... and smaller breweries because they limit their space for beer. The beer stores offer a much bigger variety for St. Louis. If the grocery stores take the business from small shops, we will lose some of these smaller breweries and imported beers. We try to offer selection, variety, service, freshness and great prices. I feel that one of our best services is announcing beer releases on our blog and social media. It is a service that is time consuming, but I know a lot of people follow it and reward us for that service by shopping at our stores. We offer that service because we see results and get positive feedback on it. It we did not see results, we would not offer that service and put our efforts towards something else. I have people tell me that when I announce something limited they race to their secret grocery store that always gets an allocation to grab a bottle, but they reward us by shopping at our store for their not so hard to get beer and to get the limited releases through our BRC too. The BRC is another service. It is one that is very, very time consuming. Believe me, I would much rather post, come and get it or call for reservations. Quick, easy, and done. But we feel the time involved in the BRC is beneficial to the long term strength of our beer department and even the strength of keeping and getting more beer here.
In summary, I just hope people support all the local craft beer stores here in town. It will really help grow the craft beer in St. Louis. We will keep trying to earn your business with our service, selection and prices. We are trying to be as fair as possible with the limited releases. Just food for thought - if you had your own store, try to think how you would allocate out 12 bottles of desirable beer to 1000s of customers you have. It is tough and impossible to make everyone happy. All you can do is try and try and listen to suggestions. We try to do that.
I think the window length should vary - some long, some short. All long dissuades people from signing up, all long is a disservice to the long time customers. Doesn't have to be 50-50, but mixing it up is probably a good idea. It could be that TWCP exclusive releases are always longs or every release is a combination of shorts and longs. Tons of ways to do it, but it shouldn't just be one way or another.
BRC release beers should not count toward the BRC totals. Otherwise the rich just get richer, so to speak.
I really like the idea of a points system, where purchases get you points, and once you use those points, they're gone. I understand that might be too complicated for the system now, but I think it's a good long term goal.
Got it, I have no problem mixing it up. I thought about excluding BRC beers from points, but again it just is not possible with the current system. I can make it random and roll a die and add 1 - make it go from 2-7 months.
How is it not possible to exclude BRC points? Couldn't you at the cashier at the time of sale refuse to accept email/phone number? Just have a customer separate his/her purchases. I think that the rich getting richer is big deal. The people in the top twelve for most of the year could be getting hundreds of dollars from special or limited beers. It seems that the BRC program along with customer rewarding, is designed for people to the buy the regular stuff so you get more of the limited stuff.
It will create a great amount of confusion. It would have to be rung as a separate transaction form their other purchases so that it is not added to their total. With 4 stores and so many employees it will be hard for them to know and keep track of which ones are excluded from the BRC program. On a busy Friday when there is a line at the register it would really slow it down and there is now doubt people will forget to exclude that beer. That would lead to some people getting credit for it and others not getting credit for it.
I think its in your best interest to announce it ahead of time. That way Ole Money Bags will still come in and drop $10k on beer just to get at the new Side Project release.
I would also make sure the list stays very secret. No one should be able to walk in and ask what their position is on the list.
If I remember correctly you do mix up who gets the allotment, right? Or if you get 12 bottles it goes to the top 12 BRC members? I probably don't spend more than $30 a month at the shop. Is there any chance of getting a beer through the rewards club?
Paul- on the day of twcp festival you had double brc points for what you said was the next two rare limited releases. I am assuming you are still honoring this and these $$ spent. Outside of deviation, what is the other rare limited release that double brc count towards?
I personally have never been a fan of the BRC. But of course, I’m also one who’s never got a limited release beer from TWCP since the inception of the BRC. Until recently I’ve always tried to buy as much of the beer, wine, and liquor I consume from TWCP as possible since you’ve always had the best selection, service, and prices in St. Louis, and because of that I always recommend you guys to my friends, family, and coworkers as the BEST beer/wine/liquor store in St. Louis. I’m just not one who has enough money or free time to spend drinking to spend the dollar amounts on beer required to make the top of the BRC. But I’d still like to have a chance at SOME of the limited releases. It just doesn’t seem fair when I’ve been a loyal customer since I turned 21 that all of a sudden I rarely have a chance at any of the limited releases and now the same 24-48 people are the ones getting it all, every time.
I recently changed jobs and no longer go right by TWCP every day. If it weren’t for the BRC, I’d still go out of my way to buy from TWCP, but the BRC has de-incentivized (even a real word?) me to go out of my way to do so. So now I’ve broken down and find myself at Randall’s more often than TWCP unfortunately :-/
But you are running a business not a beer geeks charity, and the BRC probably does end up making you a lot more money
"I personally have never been a fan of the BRC.".....
To BRC or not to BRC that is one agonizing question we deal with..... It does have pluses and minuses. I understand your point and we struggle with it all the time. Unfortunately, I do not have the answer to make it better. We do save bottles of limited releases and put them on the shelf without telling people so that they can be found by shoppers. This, I think, is a plus, because at least there is a chance. At other stores, you know after 2 hours, any limited release is sold out, so there is no chance of finding it there after that. And we do randomly pick people further down the list for limited releases. This is a small balance we have been able to come up with to help a little. Without the BRC, we felt a lot of the release were going to people that did not buy anything else from the store. Many people were able to take off work on big release days and drive around town scooping up the limited releases at all stores and they are never seen again until the next release. We are trying to do our best to support the people that support our stores. I do not think the BRC has increased our sales on beer. Our beer sales continue to increase, but there was no noticeable change in the percent of increase when we started the BRC. It has been roughly the same increase we were seeing before we started the BRC, there was no spike in business. Which in essence means we might be making less money because of the amount of time that is spent on BRC. It is a bit time consuming. But we do it because it seems to be the fairest method. Again, with 12 bottles of a limited beer, what can you do? More people will not get a bottle than will, it is very unfortunate for everyone involved. On our limited barrel releases from Side Project, 2nd Shift, Charleville and so on we have 200+ bottles and it gets down the list pretty far. So we are able to support a lot of people with those.
29 comments:
Honestly Paul- I think for you, not announcing the releases would hurt your business. I understand that this is to reward the regulars, but the only reason someone constantly in the top 20 would say this is because they have anything to worry about.
I consider myself a very regular customer, but I would be lying if i said a special release did not incentivize me to buy more.
Your bottle shop is the only shop that I buy beer from. First and foremost because of the selection. The BRC is the second reason that I like going there. I've been able to get some great beers (including side projects) that I probably wouldn't be able to get elsewhere.
I am usually in the running for the releases, but not knowing would cause a gap in fairness with people that have unlimited income to spend on alcohol. It just makes me buy more beer sooner that i would end up buying regardless. And it keeps me coming back to your shop and builds anticipation and excitement knowing what special release is coming next.
I think it would be odd to change the current system. Seems to be working fine the way it is.
Hopefully the derivation release will at least remain as planned.
just my two cents. :)
Thanks for the input. I personally enjoy announcing ahead of the release as I enjoy the excitement that people get out of it too. The Derivation will not be changed, I will announce as soon as I have the release date. It would not be fair to switch it up in the middle of release.
Yeah the BRC for you guys is for sure a huge money maker for your strores. I would be lying if I said the BRC didn't entice me to spend hundreds of dollars at your place in an effort to score some rare SP releases. BTW here's my credit card number. Take what you need and I'll be by to get my Derivation bottles. :)
I've thought about this a lot and had another idea come up the other day. Instead of using just using the 'top customers' for each release, point balances were used and were calculated for each one (similar to now - possibly a point/$ with a higher allocation being used for the same type/brand of beer so if it was a limited Founder's beer, Founder's purchases would ring up at a 2x balance for that one release). Then, points were deducted for those releases people choose to get on with a value being based on the rarity of the beer (rarer beers would deduct more from the balance). This way, people would only accept beers they really wanted and would allow more members of the BRC access to beers since some there may be some passing to keep their points for a more limited beer down the road. I know this would be quite a bit more work, but just wanted to put out another option. If you spend on a certain beer type/brand (brand would be easier, but type of beer might be a better option to allow people to have a chance for their type of beer that they spend the most on such as IPA, barleywine, etc), then you could possibly get those related limited releases if you saved your points for them since your points balance would be skewed toward them but would allow other people more access to other limited releases instead of the top 20 people always getting everything and the rest just hoping.
That being said, I think not announcing them would be the better way of doing things. Those with large amounts to spend on alcohol will anyway and it would remove the 'splurging' people from the pool allowing those who normally shop there the better chance at getting releases.
No offense Jason, but that sounds ridiculously complicated and logistically challenging.
You should just do what you need to do to sell out your inventory as quickly as possible. That's why you are in business, to make money and provide a service. The beer scene has turned into a bunch of whiners and hoarders who think every beer their heart desires should be sitting on their shelf. Here's an idea, if you really want a beer go to the store and buy it. Hopefully it works out and you get your beer. If it doesnt, oh well, that's just how it works some time. The only thing a shop needs to do is put a limit on rare releases so the hoarders and truck chasers don't buy out a whole inventory in one swoop.
As someone who has been in the top and bottom of the list I really think the announcement should be disbanned. I myself am 100% guilty of checking rhe blog and dropping $$$ when a beer I want is even mentioned.
I personally think its a little off putting that sometimes all of the beer is released through brc and not half brc half first come first serve. Since I dont come in as often anymore I tend to take a majority of my business else where solely for the fact that I'm so far behind in purchases now and side project releases that im not even remotely interested in have made the brc that much more competitive.
Jason,
Yes, our system is not capable of so many options. We are getting a new POS system in the near future and it should be an upgrade and their might be more options.
"I personally think its a little off putting that sometimes all of the beer is released through brc and not half brc half first come first serve."
I do not announce it, but some of each release ends up on the shelf for people to find. I don't want to announce first come because we have found out that just leads to the people running all around town to get as many bottles from every store in town and many do not by anything else form the store. I have done some surprise releases first come first served, but I think that is the worst method for everyone and do not plan to do that very often.
I will usually wait a week or even two and start putting bottles on the shelf. People are usually done running around town and just looking for the cherries at that point. A regular shopper in the store will find it on the shelf. Somebody not looking for it, just shopping for their weekly 6 pack or whatever.
48 bottles of the Side Project Merci were sold over the course of about 3 weeks on the shelf. Bottles appeared on the shelves of all 4 of our locations for regular shoppers to find. I think that is a great way to support people that are not on the top of the BRC, but are in the store every week.
" Since I dont come in as often anymore I tend to take a majority of my business else where solely for the fact that I'm so far behind in purchases now. "
Lol.
This is case and point why the BRC and announcing the releases are a good thing.
Jake R - it is like every other method, some good and some bad. There are people that spend more, but as you can see from the comments and emails I have seen, we lose some customers. Some get frustrated and it is understandable if they do not get limited releases. Some of the release we only get 12 bottles, it is just a losing situation. You have the person at #13 that did spend a lot of money and still did not get a bottle, you could lose a good customer that way too.
Just something to think about- most of the people voting no on announcing the releases likely aren't spending money in your stores anyways... so take this poll with a grain of salt.
It would be more beneficial to do this survey through in-store customer beer purchases and visits..
Yes, that is true. Just as if I asked people to vote if we should keep the BRC, people getting beer would vote yes and people not would say get rid of it. I am not sure I will get a clear answer, there really is no right answer.
I personally am a fan of the announcements, it creates hype and I spend more $$ than I should towards getting a rare beer which should be a positive for the TWCP. If I was honest about the BRC as a whole, I am not a big fan as only the bigger releases, Side Project, Perennial, and 2nd shift tend to be the only ones that drop off beers in large quantities that allow for a larger part of the BRC to obtain them. That being said, Side Project has clearly elevated the BRC as these beers are the most highly sought after beers in the area, IMO, so to go to unannounced releases I think you will find the TWCP sales drop off. Unfortunately, their is no right answer as every large liquor store in the area does it differently, some have clubs, others are first come first serve, others take half holds. The only differentiating part is that TWCP has Side Project which tends to draw additional $$ when announcements are made and everyone knows TWCP has the best prices in town. My two cents.
I think it comes down to what the twcp brc defines as a "loyal" customer The amount of times a person shows up at the store regardless of dollars spent or how much someone spends each month, year etc.. This answer may be different for every business as are they a retailer of service business.
Full disclosure - when TWCP started up the BRC, I stopped shopping there. Prior to that I would usually stop in once a month and shop there specifically because of the notices/blog posts as well as a solid selection. I'm not a big whale hunter/hoarder but there are a couple yearly releases that I really look forward to that I enjoyed purchasing at TWCP. Once the BRC started up I was instantly disqualified for the limited releases since I'm just not a heavy drinker and mostly homebrew anyway. Sure some end up getting released to the shelves but I don't have the time to be swinging by a few times a week just for a chance. Why do that when I can just go to another of the many quality stores in the area. Heck, some of those stores will even take reservations over the phone still making it much easier for me personally.
All of that said - I still subscribe to TWCP postings. To my knowledge, I'd consider TWCP as one of the top contributors to the STL beer community regarding effort and knowledge. It probably doesn't sit that well that I look for a TWCP post and then go to another store to make my purchases, but that's what I do. So personally, I'm majorly in favor of keeping posts like that going.
There's some other suggestions in this comments section about how best to go about allocating limited releases. All in all, it comes down to what's best for your business. Does the BRC increase revenue by encouraging people to buy more to try and get higher on the lists? Is there an impact to foot traffic and sales for less hardcore craft beer enthusiasts? It definitely introduces some variables.
Anywho - the BRC stinks (in my opinion) but the posts about what's hitting the STL market are awesome.
IMO the best way is to have a small announcement window with a decent size sales window...
If someone can come in a few days/week notice and spend more than someone has in the previous 2-3 months then my guess is the person that has been going frequently for the 2-3 months hasnt spent very much.
In response to "Full disclosure".
I am sorry to hear that you stopped shopping at our store. Obviously no store can get all of the business, we all try our best to get the biggest piece of the pie we can, obviously. There are many factors that contribute to your shopping habits - price, service, selection, freshness, convenience, and even things like loyalty programs. The grocery stores have the convenience factor locked up and since they have gotten into craft beer, limited beers have been spread thinner for accounts such as ours. There is not more FW Parabola coming, it is just going to more accounts now. The BRC was set up to try to get more of people's "everyday" purchases from the grocery stores. It is a tough battle because of their convenience, even if they are more expensive. I am a fan of more beer stores in St. Louis, that is good for our craft beer scene. The grocery stores hinder this progress as they take a lot of the business but only carry core brands decreasing sales in smaller specialty beer stores. Grocery stores carry some very good brands like Bells, Founders and Odells and you can always find something to your liking since you are already shopping there. But they do not carry the selection of Belgian, German, Danish craft, Canadian craft.... and smaller breweries because they limit their space for beer. The beer stores offer a much bigger variety for St. Louis. If the grocery stores take the business from small shops, we will lose some of these smaller breweries and imported beers.
We try to offer selection, variety, service, freshness and great prices.
I feel that one of our best services is announcing beer releases on our blog and social media. It is a service that is time consuming, but I know a lot of people follow it and reward us for that service by shopping at our stores. We offer that service because we see results and get positive feedback on it. It we did not see results, we would not offer that service and put our efforts towards something else. I have people tell me that when I announce something limited they race to their secret grocery store that always gets an allocation to grab a bottle, but they reward us by shopping at our store for their not so hard to get beer and to get the limited releases through our BRC too.
The BRC is another service. It is one that is very, very time consuming. Believe me, I would much rather post, come and get it or call for reservations. Quick, easy, and done. But we feel the time involved in the BRC is beneficial to the long term strength of our beer department and even the strength of keeping and getting more beer here.
In summary, I just hope people support all the local craft beer stores here in town. It will really help grow the craft beer in St. Louis. We will keep trying to earn your business with our service, selection and prices. We are trying to be as fair as possible with the limited releases. Just food for thought - if you had your own store, try to think how you would allocate out 12 bottles of desirable beer to 1000s of customers you have. It is tough and impossible to make everyone happy. All you can do is try and try and listen to suggestions. We try to do that.
My two cents.
I think the window length should vary - some long, some short. All long dissuades people from signing up, all long is a disservice to the long time customers. Doesn't have to be 50-50, but mixing it up is probably a good idea. It could be that TWCP exclusive releases are always longs or every release is a combination of shorts and longs. Tons of ways to do it, but it shouldn't just be one way or another.
BRC release beers should not count toward the BRC totals. Otherwise the rich just get richer, so to speak.
I really like the idea of a points system, where purchases get you points, and once you use those points, they're gone. I understand that might be too complicated for the system now, but I think it's a good long term goal.
Kris,
How is "all long" a disservice to the long time customers? Most felt that was the best benefit for long time customers?
Typo. All short is a disservice to the long time customers. Sorry, I was trying to type and chew gum at the same time.
Got it, I have no problem mixing it up. I thought about excluding BRC beers from points, but again it just is not possible with the current system. I can make it random and roll a die and add 1 - make it go from 2-7 months.
How is it not possible to exclude BRC points? Couldn't you at the cashier at the time of sale refuse to accept email/phone number? Just have a customer separate his/her purchases. I think that the rich getting richer is big deal. The people in the top twelve for most of the year could be getting hundreds of dollars from special or limited beers. It seems that the BRC program along with customer rewarding, is designed for people to the buy the regular stuff so you get more of the limited stuff.
It will create a great amount of confusion. It would have to be rung as a separate transaction form their other purchases so that it is not added to their total. With 4 stores and so many employees it will be hard for them to know and keep track of which ones are excluded from the BRC program. On a busy Friday when there is a line at the register it would really slow it down and there is now doubt people will forget to exclude that beer. That would lead to some people getting credit for it and others not getting credit for it.
I think its in your best interest to announce it ahead of time. That way Ole Money Bags will still come in and drop $10k on beer just to get at the new Side Project release.
I would also make sure the list stays very secret. No one should be able to walk in and ask what their position is on the list.
If I remember correctly you do mix up who gets the allotment, right? Or if you get 12 bottles it goes to the top 12 BRC members? I probably don't spend more than $30 a month at the shop. Is there any chance of getting a beer through the rewards club?
Paul- on the day of twcp festival you had double brc points for what you said was the next two rare limited releases. I am assuming you are still honoring this and these $$ spent. Outside of deviation, what is the other rare limited release that double brc count towards?
Due to the excitement, I decided I would do it on the Derivation and whatever the next Side Project release will be after that.
I personally have never been a fan of the BRC. But of course, I’m also one who’s never got a limited release beer from TWCP since the inception of the BRC. Until recently I’ve always tried to buy as much of the beer, wine, and liquor I consume from TWCP as possible since you’ve always had the best selection, service, and prices in St. Louis, and because of that I always recommend you guys to my friends, family, and coworkers as the BEST beer/wine/liquor store in St. Louis. I’m just not one who has enough money or free time to spend drinking to spend the dollar amounts on beer required to make the top of the BRC. But I’d still like to have a chance at SOME of the limited releases. It just doesn’t seem fair when I’ve been a loyal customer since I turned 21 that all of a sudden I rarely have a chance at any of the limited releases and now the same 24-48 people are the ones getting it all, every time.
I recently changed jobs and no longer go right by TWCP every day. If it weren’t for the BRC, I’d still go out of my way to buy from TWCP, but the BRC has de-incentivized (even a real word?) me to go out of my way to do so. So now I’ve broken down and find myself at Randall’s more often than TWCP unfortunately :-/
But you are running a business not a beer geeks charity, and the BRC probably does end up making you a lot more money
"I personally have never been a fan of the BRC.".....
To BRC or not to BRC that is one agonizing question we deal with.....
It does have pluses and minuses. I understand your point and we struggle with it all the time. Unfortunately, I do not have the answer to make it better. We do save bottles of limited releases and put them on the shelf without telling people so that they can be found by shoppers. This, I think, is a plus, because at least there is a chance. At other stores, you know after 2 hours, any limited release is sold out, so there is no chance of finding it there after that. And we do randomly pick people further down the list for limited releases. This is a small balance we have been able to come up with to help a little. Without the BRC, we felt a lot of the release were going to people that did not buy anything else from the store. Many people were able to take off work on big release days and drive around town scooping up the limited releases at all stores and they are never seen again until the next release. We are trying to do our best to support the people that support our stores. I do not think the BRC has increased our sales on beer. Our beer sales continue to increase, but there was no noticeable change in the percent of increase when we started the BRC. It has been roughly the same increase we were seeing before we started the BRC, there was no spike in business. Which in essence means we might be making less money because of the amount of time that is spent on BRC. It is a bit time consuming. But we do it because it seems to be the fairest method. Again, with 12 bottles of a limited beer, what can you do? More people will not get a bottle than will, it is very unfortunate for everyone involved. On our limited barrel releases from Side Project, 2nd Shift, Charleville and so on we have 200+ bottles and it gets down the list pretty far. So we are able to support a lot of people with those.
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