Minnesota Municipal Beverage Association Newsletter
(July 1, 2012 - July 7, 2012)
 Click Here
for the
As I See It...

Summer

   

Summer HEAT is here!! 

 

Beer should sell itself for a couple months.

 

Speaking of beer, I made a decision after speaking with some of the directors at Boot Camp this year. 

 

I always used to put 2 types of 24pk beers on sale each month, now only 1. 

 

My salesman do not like this, but they get it! 

 

My sales are great because I can offer a better price when just one is on sale.

 

Plus my Gross Profit has increased, and with this being beer season I am looking forward to the increased profits! 

 

If you don't do this already, TRY IT!!  Your operation and city will benefit. 

 

Have a beautiful summer everyone!!

 

Vicki Segerstrom

Milaca Off Sale

 

DeSchepper Retiring this Summer
DeSchepper 

Lori Ehde, Rock County StarHerold

 

Blue Mound Liquor Store (Luverne) manager Rich DeSchepper is retiring this summer, but he said he has mixed feelings about leaving the job.

 

"I'm thoroughly enjoying it," he said about his work.

 

He said one of his favorite quotes is by Confucius, "Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life."

 

DeSchepper said this was the case for nearly every day he worked at the liquor store. "It's really true."

 

He came to the liquor store by way of the city's solid waste department, where he hauled garbage from 3:30 to 11:30 a.m.

 

"I loved that job," he said. "I'm a morning person, and then my afternoons were free."

 

But, he said, he missed the daily contact with people that he had enjoyed at the Sears Catalog Company that he and his wife, Colleen, had operated from 1977 to 1992.

 

He said Sears' decision to close the store in Luverne was hard on them at the time, but it opened doors to new opportunities.

 

After DeSchepper had worked a few years hauling garbage, the city's municipal liquor store manager position opened up and he was hired for the job.

 

"I knew nothing about liquor, and I didn't drink," he recalled.

But he knew a few things about running a business and what he looks for in other businesses.

 

"Are they personable? Is it bright? Is it clean? These are things I look for," he said, "and I don't think I'm that different from everyone else."

 

It wasn't long before DeSchepper installed more light bulbs, applied fresh paint and gave the place a good scrubbing.

 

And people noticed.

 

"People stop in here from hockey tournaments or from the state park, and they comment on how bright and clean it is," DeSchepper said. "And it's nice to hear."

 

He also gets comments on the wine selection, which now includes 350 different labels.

 

"That's really unheard of for a municipal liquor store," he said, crediting 10 years of wine tasting events for generating a regional interest in Luverne's wine.

 

He declined to share the numbers, but he said wine sales in the past decade have increased 10-fold since the wine tasting events started.

 

"It's been fun to see it grow from what it was to what it is now," DeSchepper said. "It's been amazing to see that happen."

 

But he emphasized he didn't do it alone.

 

"I've been very fortunate; I've had very good part-time help and one very good assistant manager," he said, referring particularly to Christy Hess, who has been at Blue Mound Liquor for nearly 16 years.

 

"The good Lord shined upon us the day she came through the door and applied for a job," DeSchepper said about Hess. "She is top-notch; she has done a very good job for us."

 

He said one of the most important physical changes to the store was in 2005 when the beer cave was put in. The walk-in cooler stores 1,500 cases of beer that customers can access on their own.

 

DeSchepper said it eliminated the need for one employee and has already half paid for itself in the last five years.

 

He said the previous coolers could only display six cases of beer, so an employee had to constantly restock the shelves.

 

The beer cave has allowed the liquor store to carry more varieties of beer - up to 200 now, ranging from domestics to imports to microbrews.

 

The city of Luverne is still seeking a replacement for DeSchepper.

 

His only advice to a new manager is to remember the purpose of a municipal liquor store: to keep liquor out of the hands of minors and to make a profit for the city of Luverne, "to keep taxes low for all residents."

 

He said he enjoyed the past 17 years at Blue Mound Liquor, but at 68 years old, DeSchepper said it's time to start enjoying retirement.

 

"I will definitely miss the work and I will miss the people," he said.

His immediate plans include spending time with his family (children Tahmi and Todd and two grandchildren) and traveling.

Fraud Increases During Economic Downturn 
Theft - 2 

The number of fraud incidents and the dollar amount of losses due to fraud both increased during the recent recession.

 

These are findings from "Occupational Fraud: A Study of the Impact of an Economic Recession", copyright 2009 by the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners.

 

Specifically, the study found an increase in employee embezzlements.

 

Increases in fraud stemmed from the pressure of increased financial strain on organizations and on individuals, according to the study.

 

During a downturn the opportunities for fraud may increase as cuts are made to the workforce, which may in turn lead to internal controls being eliminated as a consequence of staff reductions.

 

In addition, bad financial news may allow individuals to rationalize previously unthinkable acts.

 

The study confirms that fraud prevention measures are essential during periods of financial distress. For more information on the study, go to:

http://www.acfe.com/occupational-fraud.aspx.

Washington: Grocery Stores Selling Liquor Try to Get a Handle on Shoplifters

Teen Drinking 

 

Source: KING

 

July 3, 2012

 

As shoppers pick up groceries at the West Seattle Thriftway, some are picking out their booze to buy along the way. But unfortunately there are some who steal the Stoli, and snatch the schnapps.

 

Some brands are so popular, the bottles had to be removed from the boxes and locked up.

 

"Patron is one that is a name brand that kids like to steal it," says Paul Kapioski, store owner. "They can resell it."

 

Kapioski says they catch about 10 shoplifters stealing hard alcohol a week.

 

Besides stationing a staffer near the liquor section at all times, the store has spent $8,000 to $10,000 on security tops and $35,000 on a new security camera system.

 

"We have chimes that go off in the department here when someone comes into the department," says Kapioski. "We have gates that we lock up at the department at night."

 

He says the thieves get creative, sometimes working in teams. They'll even use the reusable shopping bags to hide the bottles as they walk out the door. Staff has seen the thieves range from teens to senior citizens.

 

But at a Safeway in Olympia, minors caught lifting the liquor made some statements and that made police take a closer look.

 

"They had made a comment that 'everybody is doing it,'" says Laura Wohl, spokesperson for Olympia police. "And that they were stealing the alcohol to sell to other students."

 

Last month, Olympia police arrested 4 minors for stealing liquor, compared to none for June the year before. They also caught 10 minors possessing hard alcohol last month compared to two for the same time last year.

 

Police say it's too early to tell if it's a trend or just a byproduct of the new access to alcohol.

 

"One of the things we want stores to be aware of when they see teens to keep an eye on them and when they're going to the hard alcohol section to be very aware of what they're doing there," said Wohl.

 

No one is less ready for tomorrow than the person who holds the most rigid beliefs about what tomorrow will contain
Future Dates to Remember!!

2012 MMBA Regional Meetings

 

Fall 2012

 

2013 MMBA Boot Camp 

 

February 19 & 20, 2013

Breezy Point Resort

 

2013 MMBA Annual Conference

 

May 18 - 21, 2013

Arrowwood Resort

Ask A Director

Gary Buysse
Rogers
763-428-0163

Cathy Pletta
Kasson
507-634-7618
  
Vicki Segerstrom
Milaca
320-983-6255
  
Brian Hachey
Stacy
651-462-2727

Nancy Drumsta
Delano
763-972-0578

Lara Smetana
Pine City
320-629-2020

Michael Friesen
Hawley
218-483-4747

Tom Agnes
Brooklyn Center
763-381-2349

Steve Grausam
Edina
952-903-5732

Toni Buchite
50 Lakes
218-763-2035

Brenda Visnovec
Lakeville 
952-985-4901
 
Bridgitte Konrad
North Branch
651-674-8113
  
Shelly Dillon
Callaway
218-375-4691
  
Karissa Kurth
Buffalo Lake
320-833-2321
 
Paul Kaspszak
MMBA
763-572-0222
1-866-938-3925

 
Click Here For Newsletter Archives 
Join Our Mailing List
Wine 101
Wine2
Beverage Alcohol Training
BAT Logo
 Bob Leslie remains available to do alcohol awareness server training.
 
Contact him at:
 
320-766-3871
 
A Very Drunk Man...
Drunk Guy 2

A very drunk man orders a drink.

 

As the bartender serves him, he asks him if he would like to try a game of darts.

 

Only a dollar for three darts, and three in the bulls-eye wins a prize.

 

"I'm game," the drunk slurs, and he throws the first dart. It's a bulls-eye!!

 

He downs another drink, takes aim on wobbly feet...another bulls-eye!!

 

He throws down two more drinks, he's barely able to stand, but he somehow lets the last dart fly. A third bulls-eye!!

 

Everyone in the bar is astounded. No one has ever won before, let alone anyone that drunk.

 

The bartender searches for a prize, grabs a turtle from the terrarium on the bar, and presents it to te drunk as his prize.

 

Three weeks pass. The drunk returns and orders more drinks, then announces he would like to try the dart game again.

 

To the total amazement and wonderment of all in attendance, he scores three more bulls-eyes and demands his prize.

 

The bartender has no idea what to give him, so he asks, "Hey, remind me, what did you win the last time?"

 

"A roast beef sandwich on a hard roll - it was great!!" the guy replies.

2011 MMBA Platinum Members 
Trinchero 

Contact Trinchero Family Estates 

Ste. Michelle Logo

Contact Ste. Michelle Wine Estates

NABCA
Contact the National Alcohol Beverage Control Association
Miima Logo

Contact Minnesota Independent Ice Manufacturers Association

MillerCoors

Contact MillerCoors

Beam Logo

Contact Beam Global

Arctic Glacier Logo

Contact Arctic Glacier Ice

AB Logo

Contact Anheuser-Busch