Welcome to summer! It was slow to come this year and it doesn't seem like it should be as late in the year as it is.

We depend on the summer and the vacationers, as we live and work in a tourist area.

At 50 Lakes Bar and Bottle Shop, we plan activities to attract new business along with our regular weekly meat raffles, bingo and Texas Hold-em.

We have a Mexican afternoon and a beach party that costs little to put on, and are fun.

At the Mexican party we play "free" bingo from a program we downloaded. We also have a bean bag contest.

We put out some food and run a drink special on Mexican beer, Lime-a-Ritas and Margaritas.

The beach party is pretty much run the same way.

With a little effort and little cost, our patrons have fun and we profit.

We have taken games from the television show, Minute to Win It, such as the "Oreo Challenge" (putting the cookie on your forehead and without hands getting it into your mouth).

We've had several Red Solo Cup parties when the song first became popular. At first it was "Make a Hat" out of Red Solo Cups and then "Make Anything" out of Red Solo Cups.

It just takes some planning and you can make a party out of many things.

When one of my bartenders came to me with a plan for a Kentucky Derby party, we went with it.

She put out the stats on all the horses and jockeys in the race and patrons picked their winning horse for a prize. We also have a hat contest and serve Mojitos, along with Diana's famous bourbon balls.

There is racing trivia and a parking lot horse race with stick horses. (No running as this is done with shaking dice-one dice for the horse number and one for how many steps to take).

We just had our third annual and people actually plan their weekend so they can attend.

Imitation is the best form of flattery -- other near-by towns have now started a Kentucky Derby party.

These are just some of the fun things we do to attract business.

Good luck to everyone this summer and all year!

Remember to have fun!

Toni Buchite

50 Lakes Bar & Bottle Shop

By Nicole Reyhle

There are a thousand ways a store can display products. Actually, there are millions of ways. The question is, what really makes the most impact on your sales and customers?

Three not-to-ignore tips when merchandising your store include:

1. The Power of Engagement

Customers love to be engaged. Whether it's sampling a product, talking about craft beer, learning more about wine and spirits, helping to determine what to buy or demoing a unique product, the power of engagement always helps consumers get more interested in products.

On the flip side, they may identify it's not something they want... but with the right inventory assortment and the right mix of opportunities for customers to be engaged with, there is sure to be something that's right for them.

The real takeaway here is to make sure your store enables customers to touch and pick up products and get engaged with them - plain and simple. Does your store do this? Could your store do it better?

2. The Simplicity of Displays

Have you ever been in a store that was so overwhelming, you didn't know where to land your eyes or which direction to walk? Often, stores neglect the general rules of merchandising - including keeping products clear and visible, appealing in display and approachable for customers to touch - that they instead clutter their store shelves, racks and walls.

As a result, utter confusion from customers.

Take a look around your store and identify your 3 newest items. Are they easy to find? Would your customers notice them as new to your store assortment. Now look for your three oldest items. Are they front and center or mixed in among current products?

Your goal should be to have clear views of your product that are not distracted by other product or displays. Instead, your displays should flow naturally and lead your customers throughout your store.

3. The Support of Signage 

Even if you only have one customer in your store at any given time, it's impossible to tell them everything about your store and the product within it.

Through a combination of signage, press clippings and product / company overviews, let "words" do some of your talking. Frame everything consistently or make sure they are at least professionally presented to ensure your customers recognize these signage opportunities as a place for them to gain valuable information.

And please, please, please update your signage as necessary and take down any signage that looks beat up, torn up or out-of-date.

A final tip. If you merchandise and re-merchandise your store regularly. It will not feel like such a huge chore to get it done. Move things around every day and keep your store interesting for every customer - even the ones that see it weekly.  

A woman is in a supermarket is following a grandfather and his badly behaved 3 year-old grandson.

It's obvious to her that he has his hands full with the child screaming for sweets in the sweet aisle, cookies in the cookie aisle; and for fruit, cereal and coke in the other aisles.
 
Meanwhile, Granddad is working his way around, saying in a controlled voice, "Easy William, we won't be long, easy, boy."

Another outburst, and she hears the granddad calmly say, "It's okay, William just a couple more minutes and we'll be out of here. Hang in there, boy."
 
At the checkout, the little terror is throwing items out of the cart, and Granddad says again in a controlled voice, "William, William, relax mate, don't get upset. We'll be home in five minutes, stay cool, William."

Very impressed, the woman goes outside where the grandfather is loading his groceries and the boy into the car.

She said to the elderly gentleman, "It's none of my business, but you were amazing in there. I don't know how you did it. That whole time, you kept your composure, and no matter how loud and disruptive he got, you just calmly kept saying things would be okay. William is very lucky to have you as his grandpa."
 
"Thanks," said the grandfather, "but I'm William .......this little terror's name is Kevin."

Beverage Alcohol Training