LiquorLand (sometimes referred to as Liquorland) is a franchise of independently owned bottle shops around New Zealand, operated by Foodstuffs.[2] LiquorLand is part of the Fly Buys and Airpoints loyalty schemes.[1]

LiquorLand
Company typeSubsidiary
IndustryRetail
Headquarters
Number of locations
145 stores[1]
Area served
New Zealand
ProductsBottle shops
ParentFoodstuffs
Websitewww.liquorland.co.nz

Brands

edit

LiquorLand (1981-present)

edit

LiquorLand was established in 1981 as a franchise of independently owned liquor stores.[1] By 2002, under the ownership of DB Breweries, it had 72 stores.[3] By 2005, it had 80 stores.[4]

Foodstuffs purchased the franchise in 2009 for an undisclosed sum.[5] Woolworths Group had also attempted to purchase the chain.[6]

Birds Liquorsave (1991-2005)

edit

Birds Liquorsave was established in Hamilton in 1991. It had seven stores in Hamilton, Rotorua, Thames and Tauranga by 2005.[7]

The Mill took over Birds Liquorsave in 2005, rebranding the stores as The Mill Liquorsave.[7][8] The stores were converted into LiquorLand stores, after Foodstuffs purchased The Mill in 2015.[9]

The Mill (1993-2015)

edit

The Mill was established in New Plymouth in 1993.[10] It had 24 stores in 2004,[9] and had 31 stores by 2005.[7] It took over Birds Liquorsave in October 2005, rebranding the stores as The Mill Liquorsave.[7] It also introduced no-frills stores in March 2006.[8]

Independent Brewers, a Papakura-based alcohol company owned by Asahi Breweries,[11] purchased The Mill franchise in May 2013.[10] The franchise reached 35 stores; most were located in the North Island but none were located in Auckland.[12]

Independent Brewers sold The Mill to Foodstuffs for an undisclosed sum in October 2015,[13] The stores were converted into LiquorLand stores.[9] None of the stores were located in Auckland.

Duffy & Finn's (2006-2010)

edit

Foodstuffs established the Duffy & Finn's alcohol chain in 2006. The first outlet, a small liquor store, opened in Porirua in August. The second outlet, a $1 million 800m² large-format store, opened in Pukekohe in November.[14][15]

The chain was based on Australian liquor chain Dan Murphy's. At the time, Woolworths Group had been understood to be planning to expand the chain to New Zealand.[16]

The Duffy and Finn's store was phased out following Foodstuffs' purchase of LiquorLand in 2009.[5] The two stores were continuing to operate in 2011.[17][18] The brand was removed from the Foodstuffs website in the last three months of that year.[18][19]

Henry's Beer, Wine & Spirits (2006-2023)

edit

The first Henry's store was opened in Queenstown in October 2006.[16]

Foodstuffs purchased nine Imperial Discount Liquor stores in Kaikōura, Rangiora and Christchurch, rebranding them as Henry's from June 2007.[16] The Imperial Discount Liquor franchise had been operating since 2004.[20]

From late 2022, Foodstuffs began to phase out the Henry's Beer, Wine & Spirit brand. All 19 stores were converted to LiquorLand with the last store rebranding at the end of February 2023.

History

edit

During the initial COVID-19 lockdown in March and April 2020, Foodstuffs was required to close its liquor stores and shift to online sales.[21] When the stores were allowed to reopen, they began surveying customers on how the stores and website could be improved.[22]

In 2021, Foodstuffs reached an agreement with The Trusts, to allow some of its WestLiquor stores in West Auckland to be re-branded as LiquorLand.[23] Under the agreement, Foodstuffs can make recommendations on pricing.[24]

References

edit
  1. ^ a b c "About Liquorland". Liquorland New Zealand.
  2. ^ "Our Store Brands". foodstuffs-si.co.nz. Foodstuffs.
  3. ^ "DB Breweries buys 7 Liquorlands". Wilson & Horton. New Zealand Herald. 22 October 2002.
  4. ^ Chan, Karen (16 December 2005). "Cheaper liquor as chains keep growing". APN News & Media. New Zealand Herald.
  5. ^ a b "Foodstuffs buys Liquorland". stuff.co.nz. Business Day. 31 January 2009.
  6. ^ "Woolworths misses out an NZ Liquorland acquisition". Australian Food News. 31 October 2008.
  7. ^ a b c d "Liquor store gets new owner". APN News & Media. Bay of Plenty Times. 10 October 2005.
  8. ^ a b Dacruz, Michelle (12 March 2006). "The Mill launches no-frills liquor store". Wilson & Horton. New Zealand Herald.
  9. ^ a b c Gibson, Anne (7 October 2015). "Foodstuffs signs deal to acquire liquor stores". New Zealand Media and Entertainment. New Zealand Herald.
  10. ^ a b "New boy on block acquires The Mill". APN News & Media. New Zealand Herald. 21 May 2013.
  11. ^ Krause, Nick (18 August 2011). "Asahi buys Independent Liquor". stuff.co.nz. Business Day.
  12. ^ "The Mill". themill.co.nz. The Mill Holdings. Archived from the original on 13 January 2015.
  13. ^ Gibson, Nevil (8 October 2015). "Foodstuffs acquires The Mill liquor stores from Asahi". National Business Review.
  14. ^ "Foodstuffs opens Duffy & Finn's store in Auckland". APN News & Media. New Zealand Herald. 30 November 2006.
  15. ^ "Duffy & Finn's Arrives In The Auckland Region". scoop.co.nz. Foodstuffs. 30 November 2006.
  16. ^ a b c "Foodstuffs picks up more stores for Henry's chain". New Zealand Herald. New Zealand Press Association. 20 March 2007.
  17. ^ "Duffy and Finns". duffyandfinns.co.nz. Foodstuffs. Archived from the original on 9 December 2010.
  18. ^ a b "Foodstuffs Our Brands". foodstuffs.co.nz. Foodstuffs. Archived from the original on 30 September 2011.
  19. ^ "Foodstuffs Our Brands". foodstuffs.co.nz. Foodstuffs. Archived from the original on 16 December 2011.
  20. ^ "Imperial Discount Liquor". dnb.com. Dun & Bradstreet.
  21. ^ Coltman, Karen (25 August 2021). "Liquor deliverers 'like Santa' during lockdown". stuff.co.nz.
  22. ^ Wynn, Kirsty (30 May 2021). "Pandemic fatigue: Customer Radar data reveals consumers want good service without Covid excuse". New Zealand Media and Entertainment. New Zealand Herald.
  23. ^ Clent, Danielle (8 July 2021). "Liquorland to operate in West Auckland, partnering with The Trusts". stuff.co.nz.
  24. ^ Keall, Chris (8 July 2021). "West Auckland booze war: The Trusts ink partnership with Liquorland - a new dawn?". New Zealand Media and Entertainment. New Zealand Herald.