THE WINE MERCHANT. Issue 87, January 2020
Dog of the Month: Daisy Satchells, Burnham Market
Safely gathered in It was a soggy harvest at Rathfinny in Sussex, but yields were up by 19%, the producer says
Wine shops weather the storm Number of specialist independent wine shops in the UK remains static in a gloomy year for retail trade
D
espite a year of high street
turmoil, the number of specialist independent wine shops in the
UK has held firm, The Wine Merchant can reveal.
As the new decade dawns, there are 913
stores trading across the UK, down just
one on the 914 wine shops recorded at the start of 2019.
Although the performance compares
poorly with recent years, when an annual net increase of between 40 and 60
shops was commonplace, it represents
retail failures over the past year, including
unprecedented pressure.
Cook as well as specialist businesses
a remarkably resilient showing at a time when retail generally finds itself under
The British Retail Consortium reports
that 85,000 retail jobs were lost in the
12 months to October. Online sales now
account for 19% of retail spend, putting more pressure on bricks-and-mortar
retailers who often also face punitive business rates and rent demands.
There has been a series of high-profile
famous names such as Mothercare,
Clintons, Patisserie Valerie and Thomas
such as Steamer Trading, Bathstore and Oddbins.
In the independent wine trade, new
openings have effectively compensated for
closures, with a number of existing players expanding while others – such as Borough Wines, Hailsham Cellars and Corks Out – have closed branches.
Š JackF / stockadobe.com
An independent magazine for independent retailers