Roughly 100 years ago, the American version of the supermarket was born, ushering in a whole new system of national product marketing that once relied mainly on local goods.
It wasn’t until the late 1950s that former President Dwight Eisenhower’s national highway system, headed for completion, allowed truck deliveries to expand grocery product supply to increase. Trucking allowed grocers to offer more items for sale.
It wasn’t until the 1970s that dry table wines became a major department for grocers. Wine importers liked the supermarket chain operations because a lot of wine was sold in supermarkets to those heading home to prepare dinner.
However, one supermarket reality is that shelf space is precious real estate. Most grocery stores have limited space for displaying wine. So, placing wine in a grocery store is a vital part of wine distribution.
A cynic might suggest that this is a scenario that could go awry. Proof of that thesis comes from a recent case in Southern California.
A wine buyer for a grocery chain has been charged with operating a years-long kickback scheme in which he accepted benefits for placing one company’s wines on his store’s shelves.
An article in the Los Angeles Times last week said a former employee of two grocery operations “allegedly demanded a series of payments and gifts from vendors.”
According to court filings, he did so “in exchange for his agreement to carry, increase purchases of, or prominently display certain wines.”
The article said the wine buyer “allegedly vacationed with employees of a major distributor and suppliers at exclusive golf and other resorts in Florida, Oregon, and Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, according to court documents.”
The story also said, “Executives at wine supplier Deutsch Family Wine & Spirits who allegedly provided kickbacks to (the employee) pleaded guilty earlier this year to commercial bribery in a scheme worth $360,000.”
I cannot conclude that other cases of kickbacks dictate which wines are in other grocery stores, but one thing is certain: most supermarkets do not carry many particularly unusual items. Standardization tends to rule.
In most chain grocery stores, the most popular national brands seem to dominate shelves. Creativity in purchasing is not really a common practice in supermarket wine selections.
If wine lovers are seeking something more creative or interesting, their best bet would be to visit specialty wine shops, where wholesale buying is typically done by those who really know wine.
