Specialty Food Magazine is the leading publication for retailers, manufacturers and foodservice professionals in the specialty food trade. It provides news, trends and business-building insights that help readers keep their businesses competitive.
Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/1119718
Summer Fancy Food Show Booth #5556 special." We did a board with a bottle of that, a half-wheel of Jasper Hill Willoughby, a demi-baguette, and country ham. We made a great margin and sold all of the beer in a week. If something's not performing, the menu is designed to make it perform. small but buy weekly. We receive cheese six days a week so I don't have to sit on $10,000 worth of cheese; I can replenish every day. We don't even have a walk-in cooler. Our menu is designed to make things move. We do boards that march the cheese out the door. We had a 750-ml saison that wasn't moving well, and I said, "Let's do a Janet Fletcher writes the email newsletter "Planet Cheese" and is the author of Cheese & Wine and Cheese & Beer. Any downsides to having alcohol on premise? Does it raise your insurance rates? It does, for sure. I'm sure it affects theft a lit- tle bit. People are more likely to steal a bottle of wine than a chunk of cheese, but we don't have a big problem with that. I've worked in shops where it has been a problem. I've tried to imagine a place like Cheese Bar without alcohol and it would change the entire vibe. That said, we're family friendly. You're just as likely to see someone drinking a craft soda as a craft beer. Do you use signage to cross- merchandise cheese and alcohol? I'm bad with that. It's a bull-headed problem of mine. I feel like the staff is the signage, so we don't have a lot of additional signage. I'd rather give people tastes than have them reading signs. It's a more personal experience. What beverage trends are you seeing? Cider is on a major upswing. On the beer end, it's definitely pilsners and lagers. They've gained probably 30 percent in the last two years here. People are turning their backs on super-hoppy beers. Like they say about wine drinkers: you start with Riesling, go through everything else and then end with Riesling. The big trend is toward beers that are more "sessionable." Any advice on inventory management? I personally feel that a serious wine list can be as small as 20 bottles. With wine, we buy SUMMER 2019 63 cheese focus