Why Invest: New Franchisors of WineStyles Tasting Station Uncork Retail Model That Focuses on More Than Just Wine (Part 2)

This post is the second of two parts. To read Part 1, please click here.

WineStyles Tasting Station aims to “demystify and simplify” the wine buying process for customers.  The McGinnesses’ newly redesigned store in West Glen, Iowa, serves as a prototype for future units with an ambiance reminiscent of an old-world wine cellar.

Wines are categorized by style and taste, rather than by varietal or region, which helps to simplify the shopping experience, according to company materials. The selection includes a rotation of unique labels and hard-to-find wines from both small and large vineyards from around the world. Each bottle is accompanied by a description listing the wine’s characteristics, flavors, and suggested food pairings.

“Our wine stores seek to educate our customers on the ins and outs of fine wine and allow our patrons to discover what styles of wines best suit them,” the company website states. “All of WineStyles bottles are broken down into eight distinct style categories that include crisp, silky, and rich for whites and bold, mellow, fruity for red wines, as well as bubbly for champagnes and nectar for dessert wines.”

Unique Market Leader

While other wine franchises offer retail stores and even mini-wineries, the new WineStyles Tasting Station appears to be unique in the market with its mix of offerings.

“We are the largest wine franchise in the world,” Bryan McGinness said. “There is no one that offers the same model that we offer. We have found a way to standardize wine across all states.”

The potential WineStyles Tasting Station franchisee need not be a wine expert, however, McGinness said. The company will be recruiting individual store owners as well as area developers who have sales and management experience. The training offered by the company will help them develop a knowledge of wine and other products, Andrea McGinness added.

“They are given tools so they know how to look things up with distributor and winery websites,” Andrea McGinness said. “They have to understand how to gather the information and that’s part of what we cover in training so they know those tools that are available to them.”

New franchise partners will spend a week working at the McGinnesses’ store near Des Moines, where they will receive a combination of textbook and hands-on training.