The Power Up ⎯ SN.01/EP.03
Meet A Beer Store Relying On Wholesale During Construction
Every business wants to grow, but all too often they’re afraid of the growing pains that come with it. That didn’t stop Nick Wendowski, owner of Stone’s Beer & Beverage Market when they had to move into a temporary location in order to rebuild their retail location.
During their temporary relocation, Nick turned his focus to improving internal operations in anticipation of a boom in business when they move back into their permanent location. While also growing their wholesale business from 0 to 150 accounts in two years to offset the loss in business. Nick explains, “We knew that we had to pivot and have some other revenue source and wholesale was the obvious next step for us. Now there’s a ton of competition in that space but we really carved a bit of a niche for ourselves; we’re small, nimble.”
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About The Business
Business name: Stone’s Beer & Beverage Market
Purchased the business: 2019
Owner: Nick Wendowski
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Website: https://www.stonesphilly.com
Sales diversification strategy: E-commerce, retail storefront, wholesale, home delivery, local collaborations
About Our Guest
Stone’s Beer & Beverage Market has been a staple of the Philadelphia community since 1955 and was frequently visited by Nick. In 2018, while Nick was looking to leave his corporate job in healthcare, he visited Stone’s every day for 18 months. There he observed the business and spent time preparing to purchase it with his wife, Jen in the spring of 2019.
Prior to 2016 in Philadelphia, beer was only available for purchase in independent beer stores, like Stone’s. There was hardly a need for clear in-store pricing, the beer would practically sell itself since stores like Stone’s were the only places in the neighborhood you could buy it. However, after Nick purchased the business, he knew he had to invest in modernizing it to keep up with the competition. First, Nick started with operational improvements then transformed it into an influential part of the community, and is now honing in on their sales channel strategy.
To discover how Nick reinforced different sales channels during construction, listen to the whole episode on The Power Up.
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