Walmart Expands Alcohol Delivery as Spirits Sector Toasts a Summer of Home Mixology

Come on party people, throw your hands in the air. It’s bottoms up on alcohol delivery for the summer 2023 season, and some big names are mixing at the nationwide cocktail hour.

Some of us take a more dignified approach, sipping a Dalmore ‘62 while gazing thoughtfully through our penthouse floor-to-ceiling windows. Putting those rarified moments aside, over by the stack of unopened Sotheby’s Rare Spirits checks (checks?), what’s the wider world drinking?

And almost as importantly, are people going to the liquor store, or is the store coming to them?

Trend watchers hyper-aware of the high cost of gin and tonics in commercial establishments this year see it shaping up to be a drinks-at-home summer, perhaps more so than any time since 2021 at least, when sipping through masks led to much awkwardness — and wet fabric.

On Tuesday (May 16) Uber-owned alcohol delivery service Drizly released its annual “Consumer Trend Report,” which confirms the at-home leanings this summer. Per Drizly, “With inflation, staying in is the new going out,” as 26% of respondents will spend more on drinks for home consumption this year versus in bars and restaurants, and 20% will be “self-bartending” more.

Strange, given inflationary effects, that nearly half (47%) said they will supply the sauce for guests. Additionally, Drizly said, “Gen Z (34%) and millennials (31%) are especially eager to host in 2023, wanting to do more of it this year compared to Gen X (18%) and boomers (12%).”

So, that’s an option. But if almost half of all hosts are supplying the hootch, price becomes critical. Affordable options are in demand, and the big dogs are hardly sitting this one out.

In a Friday (May 19) email to PYMNTS, Walmart said, somewhat emphatically (note the use of exclamation point): “Walmart customers across five new states — Arizona, Georgia, Iowa, Louisiana and Ohio – can now have their favorite bottle of wine or craft beer delivered directly to their front door. With summer BBQs and pool days right around the corner, that’s convenience worth toasting!”

This expands Walmart’s alcohol delivery service to “nearly 2,500 stores across 23 states, providing convenient delivery to more Walmart customers than ever before.”

Subscribe and Savor

Among subscription services bringing booze to thirsty millions, there’s a “glass half-full” optimism, even as consumer ordering patterns undergo change.

In a May 19 email to PYMNTS, Spirits Network CEO and founder Nick Buzzell said, “We are seeing more consumers buying spirits from different devices than ever before, especially connected TVs where we see more time spent engaging in premium content. With the Spirits Network video commerce technology, it’s the only place where consumers can make an instant in-video purchase with home delivery in the U.S. and U.K.”

Spirits Network’s Bottle of the Month subscription comes in handy at times like this. Buzzell told PYMNTS that “Bottle of the Month has been successful because we provide consistent, quality products every month where customers can discover new brands at competitive prices. Even with the economic downfalls happening in the country, we’ve been able to maintain consistent customer retention.”

Using alcohol as a retention tool might be frowned upon — unless you’re an alcohol subscription service. That’s no harm, no foul. And let’s face it: the idea’s got its upsides.

In the direct-to-consumer craft brewery market rules are a little fuzzier — a known side effect of alcohol sales — due to lingering effects of Prohibition-era laws now nearly 100 years old.

Industry news site Craft Brewing Business reported earlier this year that when it comes to modernizing outdated state and federal policies, “The next logical step is DTC through e-commerce. It is only a matter of time, and updating old laws, before someone cracks this market. Websites like wine.com have created a model infrastructure with wine, but most states do not allow DTC shipping for beer and spirits.”

Under the headline “Cue Amazon” the article added, “If Amazon, or a similar service, could (legally) operate a similar platform for craft brewers, then the potential for craft brewery growth is tremendous. The key is for state lawmakers to find the balance between opening this new path to market for craft brewers, while limiting potential for larger, more dominant brewers from using their influence to dominate the new sector.”

So complicated. All the red tape. Let’s talk it out. Who wants a margarita?