Other players operate within the frame of the three-tier system, such as e-commerce platform Drizly, which connects shoppers to licensed retailers on its website and app, and online convenience retailer Gopuff, which operates Amazon-style warehouses that function as licensed retailers that deliver to consumers who place online orders.Īs part of the effort, Amazon was planning to engage “like-minded retailers” to eliminate or increase state licensing caps. NBWA president and CEO Craig Purser told Brewbound: “It is concerning that a massive corporation is reportedly hiding behind a special interest shadow group to advance ways to circumvent a safe and effective alcohol ecosystem, including the local retailers that work every day to provide products in a competitive way to American consumers.”Īmazon wouldn’t be the first e-commerce company to wade into bev-alc sales, but its desire to do so via changing long-standing policy would be unprecedented. Postal Service to ship alcohol, and Pepsi-owned Blue Cloud Distributing’s middle-tier entrance.

The National Beer Wholesalers Association (NBWA) has long been fiercely protective of the three-tier system and advocates against any perceived threats, which have varied in recent years, and include a stalled movement to allow the U.S. The document’s overarching strategy pointed to the company’s mission to “modernize” the three-tier system of alcohol distribution.Īmazon’s interest in entering the bev-alc distribution space has long raised eyebrows across the industry, particularly among beer wholesalers, who have a policy advocacy giant in their corner.

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