The biggest change is Sunday and holiday sales, something entirely new to the State of Tennessee. “It’s a very, very big change in Tennessee,” Tucker Herndon, Nashville office managing partner of the 300-lawyer firm Burr & Forman told us. It’s part of the approval of wine in grocery stores and takes effect next year.
Wine may be sold on all except three holidays.
Retail liquor stores got something out of the Sunday sales provision, too. They got a roughly six-month head start on Sunday sales as well as the approval to sell liquor and beer on Sunday.
Other major legislation imposed a 10% minimum markup on spirits and for WIGS (wine in grocery stores) licensees, a 20% markup on wine. “We see this as the first step to legalize spirits sales in grocery stores,” Herndon told us. It’s a bit of protection for the independent package store operator in that it prevents a grocer for undercutting the liquor store operator on price.
Another major change legalized the delivery of beer, wine and spirits, allowing the consumer more access to alcohol beverages. Herndon sees the possibility of a consumer who has a party tonight making a few taps on his cellphone in the office and have the wine or other alcohol awaiting him when he returns home.
And Tennessee is testing allowing alcohol sales at collegiate sporting events. Assuming the tests at Middle Tennessee State University and Tennessee State University are successful, Herndon expects these sales to spread across the state. Each venue would have to be approved for alcohol sales, and the individual conferences will also have to approve. Notably, the SEC currently prohibits alcohol sales at its games.
You can hear the unedited interview here: