What can we do to improve our wine offer and increase sales?

We run a 40-cover neighbourhood restaurant and have noticed our wine sales have fallen in recent weeks. What can we do to improve our wine offer and increase sales? The solutionsGuy Holmes, The Restaurant Ingredient Wine sales continue to grow both in the on- and off-trade in this country, so to benefit from the British public's increasing demand for wine I would recommend doing some of the following: - Offer more wines by the glass. This will enable customers to be more adventurous and tempt them to try wines they might normally steer clear of. - Include some information on the food menu about the wine list. For example, list a few recommended wines that would be the perfect accompaniment to a particular dish. - Make sure you stock a number of wines available by the half-bottle. These will be popular at lunchtimes, when people don't want a whole bottle. - Offer samples of your wines to customers to taste before they order a whole bottle. - Educate your existing staff and make sure any new staff members have a passion for wine. This knowledge and passion will rub off on the customers and lead to more wine sales. - Hold tasting evenings in the early part of the week, when customers can learn about wine as well as tasting some good examples of grape varieties. - Have wine specials and promotions similar to how you might have food specials and set menus. You could also include wine in the price of a two- or three-course set menu. - Speak to your wine suppliers and get their help and advice in boosting wine sales. They will be able to help with special promotions and may give a limited amount of free stock for a particular promotion. www.tri.eu.com](http://www.tri.eu.com) Carol Godsmark, food journalist and consultant Wine sales are rocketing, so why are you missing out? Take a long look at your wine list and your suppliers. Are the prices outrageous for poor quality wine? You should be looking at margins of 62-64% gross profit. - Have about 25 wines divided equally between red and white, with some Champagne, sparkling wine, rosé and a chilled red for summer. - Invest in a Verre de Vin, the system that removes oxygen, preserving wines so you can sell all your stock by the glass. Customers will become more adventurous. - Rethink how you buy, look after and sell wine. Negotiate with several reputable suppliers. - Compare competitors' wine lists, making sure you have better, different wines. - Create an attractive, dedicated wine area and promote it. - Get rid of the house wine. If you can't part with it, choose a decent one, not cheap gut-rot. - Educate customers by offering samples. They'll trade up. Most will accept recommendations. - Train your staff by tastings, wine and food knowledge, serving techniques. - Buy good, thin-rimmed stemmed glasses to complement your wines. Polish well. - Lingering soap kills wine. Ditch streaked or damaged glasses. - Have a Specials wine board with tasting notes and wines of the week/month. - Update your wine list regularly, with simple, not cringe-making, wording. - Offer small, large or by-the-bottle units. Is your list legible and clean? - Avoid supermarket wines. When customers see the mark-up, they don't take your overheads into consideration. - If you don't understand wine, learn the subject or hire in. - Your enthusiasm and grasp of wine is infectious. Use it to sell! Carl May, Catered4 Like menus, wine lists should change and evolve regularly to stimulate interest and return trade. Look at your list and consider the following: - Design - is it flat and dull and doing little to encourage sales? - Content - is it full of wines seen everywhere else? - Pricing - are you trying too hard to achieve your margins? Try to increase your selection by the glass, giving your customers the chance to try your new wines. Actively encourage them to have a "sip" of your wines by the glass before they make their decision. Where possible, keep wine on display along with a supply of your lists to persuade the customer who is pondering their choice of drink. Train and motivate your staff to sell the wines. A lack of product knowledge means staff won't have the confidence to make recommendations. Get your wine supplier to help you with this. Increase your selection of New World wines, giving customers a chance to try something new. It's easier to surpass their expectations with a wine they know little about than it is with an established name they expect to be good. Drop the "wine speak" and make it easy to navigate your list. Group wines in drinking styles - eg, light, medium and full-bodied - rather than countries, to help customers locate the variety they like. Above all, make it fun to drink wine, invest in some great glasses and coolers, and with some guidance, your sales should rocket. [www.catered4.co.ukOur experts answer your questions Do you have a business issue you want to put before *Caterer*‘s panel of experts, drawn from all areas of the hospitality industry? E-mail: