Alder Yarrow of the #1 wine blog, Vinography, seems to have kicked off a firestorm with his post of today entitled Wine.com Gives Retailers (and Consumers) the Finger. This was then picked up on the equally popular Mark Squires Bulletin Board on eRobertParker.com in a post titled Shipping-Related Outrage: Wine.com Goes Ballistic. At the time of this post, there are over 100 comments between the two threads. What's going on?
Direct shipping laws are the real problem -- Again!
Once again the central issue revolves around this country's perverted direct shipping laws for wine. The outrage being expressed stems from the tactics Wine.com employed in its attempt to create "a level playing field for all wine sellers" (in itself, a laudable goal). However, those tactics were not aimed at changing the laws directly, but instead at encouraging regulators to more rigorously enforce those perverted laws. In a comment posted to the Vinography thread, Wine.com's CEO states "if we can use our legal standing in a state to get their attention to the issue, maybe we can bring about changes [re: shipping laws] that will benefit the online wine business." Maybe. But based on the wine-consuming public's comments on the posts noted above, they seem to disagree vociferously.
What will it take to change wine shipping laws?
The wine retailing community finally started getting organized in late 2005 when it became clearer that the Granholm Supreme Court decision was not going to translate into equal treatment for all wine sellers. This is when the Specialty Wine Retailers Association (SWRA) was born.
Retailers' self interest ensures they are making an effort with serious time and money to pursue litigation to remedy the current discriminatory situation in most states.
As Tom Wark, Executive Director of the SWRA, points out in his comment (#75) in the Squires thread, the other largely-missing-but-necessary ingredient for success in this effort is consumer involvement.
What sort of consumer involvement is needed?
- Speak up to your state legislators. If enough people become active, they will listen as you keep them in office.
- Donate directly to the SWRA. Litigation is expensive and it must be pursued on a state-by-state basis. Each state's effort typically costs a minimum of six figures and can easily reach $500,000 or more in a protracted legal battle versus better funded wholesalers. If only 100,000 wine consumers donated $25 each (the cost of one modestly priced bottle of wine), it would make a huge difference to SWRA's resources. Donate now.
- Use your buying power to influence retailers to join the SWRA. If you buy from out-of-state retailers, find out if they are SWRA members. If not, buy elsewhere or encourage them to join.
- Stay informed on the issues. Sign up for the free SWRA newsletter via email. The SWRA is the only trade association seeking to protect your rights to buy wine from out-of-state retailers. Keep in mind that the laws have evolved to treat wineries separately from retailers (in my opinion, because wineries were politically organized at a time when retailers were not so retailers were "thrown under the bus").
Bottom line: The wine retailing community needs to act together to right the wrong of the current state of wine shipping laws. The SWRA is the vehicle to organize the fight and can provide the leadership and a meaningful component of the necessary resources to win. But, you, the consumer, have a vital role to play. Make yourself heard!
