Wine online proving popular in Brexit and Covid context

A NEW Government initiative began last week under the Public Health (Alcohol) Act, which sees supermarkets no longer allowed to award loyalty points schemes through the sale of alcohol.

There is a ban on reduced price sales or as part of a package deal, which has caused the main supermarkets to change their approach.

Under SuperValu’s Real Rewards scheme, loyalty points will not be earned on the purchase of alcohol products. Tesco has said its clubcard points will not be awarded while Dunnes Stores’ voucher scheme which sees €10 vouchers issued for every €50 spent will now exclude alcohol.

The main aim is to prevent the consumption of alcohol by young people.

Gorey businessman Arnaud Clopin, originally from France, has built a career in the Irish food sector over two decades. In 2017, he founded La Kav Wines vineyard, planting half an acre of grape on his land at Tinnock Roundabout.

In May 2020, two more acres were planted and in the last eight weeks, the Irish-French wine company has been trading solely online, offering home delivery all across Ireland.

He explained that with these new regulations on alcohol, and the context of Brexit, there is demand for wine online.

‘The process began in March last year and we hope that by January next year, our project will see us as the biggest producers of Irish-French wine in the south east. My business partner is based in France and with Brexit, France is the closest connection with us outside the UK and it presents a logistical solution.

‘Brexit is going to have a major impact on our wine consumption, with a lot of wine being stored in the UK for the Irish market. We believe there is a new market, with consumers demanding quality wine that’s made in a sustainable way. In France, the tradition is respect wine and make it last, and by doing this you drink less – that’s where the new act on supermarkets comes in to play. Christmas was a learning curve but it is a major event on the wine calendar and we got to know our customers’ demands. People are used to buying wine that may not be greatly selected.

‘Our online wine is in demand and you can see why as it is available to buy 24-7 and there are no limits on how much you can purchase and it’s delivered straight to your door’.