Getting Their
ARMS Around It 

Wirtz Beverage Group's Combination of Wisdom, Vision and Specialization Drives Sales On-Premise

    When operators from across the country “Rock the Block” as part of “The Show” in Las Vegas, they’ll tour some of the city’s top nightclubs. So, the tour’s sponsor, DeLuca Liquor & Wine Ltd., is perfectly fitting. After all, it’s a division of a nationwide system of distributors that has rocked the national block for decades.
    But that system’s magic touch for boosting operator sales is the result not only of its national strength but also its eye for detail in each small market, right down to each venue.
    The Wirtz Beverage Group began doing business in Las Vegas, in June 1977 under the DeLuca name, selling only premium and regional brands through a highly trained sales staff and specialized marketing organization. DeLuca’s business philosophy is to increase sales volume and profitability by continuing to improve its distribution and market penetration, while paying special attention to cultivating stellar service to accounts.

Wisdom and Vision
    Its strong history in the industry gives the Wirtz Beverage Group a distinct advantage that benefits its accounts — an edge forged by a combination of accrued wisdom from years in the field, the resultant financial wherewithal and the vision to use those factors as a motor for seizing new opportunities. Though the divisions have different company names, they’re all regional parts of the lean, mean machine that is Wirtz Beverage Group.
    “(The experience of the Wirtz Beverage Group) provides us with a great foundation of historical information and things to grow upon,” says Don Pydo, senior vice president of Judge & Dolph Ltd., another division of Wirtz, which operates in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Nevada.
    The Wirtz family is “futuristic in analyzing the different businesses they’re in,” Pydo says. “All the companies (divisions) have seen significant organic growth and growth in their specific areas or space, through acquisitions of other distributors and things of that nature along the way.”

Security and Change
    The two-pronged strategy of utilizing established wisdom and relationships as well as taking control of the future, indeed, is a running, integral force for Wirtz Beverage Group.
    “The Wirtz family enjoys and cherishes long-term relationships with suppliers,” Pydo says, but notes, “Part of our mission statement is to expect change. Wholesalers are parked right in the middle of the three-tier system. Part of the change occurs when the supplier network changes through consolidation or the loss of agency brands — things of that nature. So, all of our people are very well versed to (react to) change. We embrace it and really try to drive change.”
    A potent weapon in the Wirtz bag of tricks is its ability to introduce, develop and grow new brands.
    “A lot of what we do, the key is to maintain and grow brand equity,” Pydo says, citing Ketel One as a case study. “When Ketel One was very small, we took that brand under our wing and nurtured it and grew it. Now it’s a 100,000-case brand in Illinois right now, and that goes on throughout the rest of the network. There’s another product called Effen Vodka, which is a great example. The Wirtz Beverage Group is driving that thing like crazy.”

Training Salespeople, Training Accounts
    Each division of Wirtz, Pydo says, spends an incredible amount of time, money and resources on training — training its sales representatives not only to sell but to train their accounts how to sell to the consumer.
    It’s all about the channel, Pydo says, and specializing for each channel is absolutely critical. Pydo offers as an example the effect training had on expanding one brand into another channel some might think impossible.
    “Jägermeister was typically an on-premise, youthful type of brand,” he says. “Our people saw opportunity for growth beyond that, and we were cutting edge in taking it to the white tablecloth restaurants and reformulating a strategy that we jokingly call ‘Frat Boys Grow Up.’ Sure enough, for example, at Morton’s Steak House, it’s the No. 1 called-for after-dinner drink now. Those are the types of things we do throughout the entire Wirtz Beverage Group.”
    Within each channel and market, the group pays personalized attention to the small segments.
    “You take this big market and break it down into small pieces so you can get your arms around it,” Pydo says. “Once you get your arms around it, you can control and dominate it.”

Reaching Patrons
    “We’re very big with doing drink cards and drink menus for the on-premise accounts,” says Fred Cooper, vice chairman of Judge & Dolph. “Sometimes you become so sophisticated that you (have to) go back to the basics,”
    “So much of (success with operators) is based upon knowledge of the salesperson and the confidence that the bar owner or retailer has in your salesperso (and his or her) knowledge of the account and tailoring it toward that account,” Pydo says.

Opportunities Into the Future
    “The key today is the youthful consumer, from legal drinking age to 30 or 35,” Pydo says.
    “They’re looking for things that are different ... but at the same time, they’ll go back to a core, base-type vodka ... depending on their situation or how they are entertaining or being entertained.” NCB