Tennessee Legislation Assists Convenience Stores in Selling Wine

While a new law will allow retailers to stock wine starting July 1, the measure does not let them order alcohol ahead of time to prepare.

March 18, 2016

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee convenience and grocery stores can finally start selling wine on July 1 under a new law, but that measure doesn’t allow retailers to actually order the alcohol beforehand, WATE-TV reports. Nearly 500 retailers have applied for a license already.

A House subcommittee has okayed a bill to fix that by letting those merchants order wine prior to July 1. “The way the bill was written in 2014 it said that stores would be able to obtain their licenses to sell wine on July 1st. It just so happens that wine wholesalers can’t sell the wine to grocery stores until they have their licenses,” Rob Ikard, president and CEO of the Tennessee Grocers and Convenience Store Association, said.

The association is backing the legislation to let retailers pre-order wine in order to start selling on July 1. This is housekeeping legislation that is necessary to be able to fulfill the expectation that our customers have that they’ll be able to buy wine on July 1,” Ikard said. “This has been a conversation going on for a very long time, and our customers absolutely are anticipating wine being in grocery stores on July 1.”

Next week, the bill advances to the House Finance Committee, which, if approved, would then head to the House floor. The move to allow grocery and convenience stores sell wine is the largest change in the state’s alcoholic beverage laws since Tennessee repealed Prohibition in 1939.

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