High Point Beer Wine and Spirits

Most of us are resistant to change; once something becomes familiar, it becomes comfortable, reliable. In our particular (local) case, there hasn’t exactly been a track record of changes for the better – the liquor law “reforms” are one example of this. So, when your local bottle shop or liquor retailer changes their branding, one might find themselves apprehensive or unhappy about the sudden displacement of familiarity. I am pleased to tell you that in the case of High Point BWS (formerly Hastings Liquor Store), this isn’t anything to be concerned about.

If anything, long-time customers should regard this as a great thing: the store recognizes the advantages of standing out and away from the misconception that they are a government liquor store; something store manager Shannon Gavin points out was a common assumption with the former name following the same standard naming scheme as the government stores found throughout the city.

“We wanted to disassociate from that image, and wanted people to know we’re a private store” Gavin emphasized. “We wanted a name we could promote, and found that in High Point. The store located at the highest point on Hastings, playing on it being the ‘high point of the day’, and putting an emphasis on beers scoring high points with sites such as ratebeer.com, beeradvocate.com all lent well to the new name.”

The store itself boasts an impressive craft offering: BC breweries are well-represented, in addition to a nicely curated spectrum of international imports. As is happening elsewhere, craft cider offerings are diversifying and becoming popular, and this trend is not lost on their program, with plenty to choose from. The entire offering is chilled in coolers, highly visible and prominently displayed across two large walls in the store. “Our motto is ‘everything cold, everything fresh’, said Gavin.

High Point has been and continues to cement its’ role in the beer scene by way of community engagement. Every Thursday,  staff member Michael hosts beer education sessions in-store called ‘Beer in Brief’, covering a swath of topics and featuring in-store tastings (all beers being tasted are discounted during the event). These attract both hardened beer nerds like many of us, but it also has an impact on customers who may have walked into the store not having ever tried craft beer before – and leave with both a newfound interest, as well as knowing more about it than they would have otherwise. “Interest in craft beer in our store is growing by bounds, every day. People come in every day and notice the coolers full of craft beer. They’ve seen or heard something about it before, and they’re curious.”

Shannon came onboard with the store a few years ago and immediately recognized the importance of developing their craft program. At the same time, staff have been encouraged to develop their interest in these products: getting into the beer scene and equipping themselves with a strong beer education of their own. “We have worked hard to staff the store with employees who know their beer” she remarked. “We’ve had staff that had gone from drinking PBR, to taking a huge interest in IPAs and seeking out great beers”.

This lends well to the consumer experience, in that being able to effectively recommend and promote quality beer benefits not only the store and their customers, but the beer community at large.

It’s clear that High Point is working extremely hard, and their momentum has allowed them to succeed despite the price increases brought on by the April 1 changes to wholesale pricing. “We are doing well; sales are up over last year.  We had to raise shelf prices appropriately, of course, but in general we’re busier than ever.”

Jeremy Noonan – CAMRA Vancouver Community Liaison