Oxford Wine Company refurbishes remaining retail outlets amid shifting business model

By Jo Gilbert

Published: 21 July, 2016

The Oxford Wine Company has refurbished its two remaining shops, although owner Ted Sandbach says that retail will continue to play a less important role in the future of the business.

The Oxford-based wine merchant has invested in its Standlake shop, which forms part of the 10,000 square feet of warehousing, office and tasting facilities 10 miles west of Oxford, and have reopened the Wine Shop at Millets Farm, after having recently closed down two outlets in rural Gloucestershire.

The company is putting increasingly focus the wholesale side of the business and also into its Oxford Wine Cafés.

On the retail side, they are focusing less on their retail premises and instead on their shop-within-a-shop partnerships with Budgens and Londis.

Owner Ted Sandbach explained that while retail is profitable on a standalone basis, he would not want to operate the stores without the balance of the strong wholesale side of the business and the Wine Cafés.

He said: "Retail is hard work in the current climate. Rent and staff costs are high and there's the minimum wage to contend with. It's not easy."

He added: "Whilst opening new retail shops is not part of our future plans we are increasingly gaining exposure by developing the shop-within-a-shop concept which generates sales without incurring the costs associated with retail."

In previous years, the contribution of the retail side of the business was on an even keel with wholesale, but this has now shifted, with wholesale now responsible for almost 75% of turnover.

Driven by sales director Neil Gladding, trade sales in June alone increased by £100,000 compared with last June.

"The increase in the wholesale side has been huge. I think that's purely down to having a lot of great sales people on the road, knocking on doors. Also we've got a good product," Sandbach said.

As the world waits with baited breath to see what impact the EU referendum will have, Sandbach believes that the current political and economic climate will contribute to the shift away from bricks and mortar and push merchants to diversify.

"Before the referendum we were getting 1.35 Euros to the pound, now it's down to 1.17. If you're selling wine in a bar for £5.50 then losing 10p wont matter, but if margins are tight like there are in retail then losing 10p a bottle makes a difference," he said.

The Oxford Wine Company's Wine Cafés are run as a separate company to retail and wholesale and are situated in the Oxford areas of Summertown and Jericho.

There are currently plans for a third café and the company is currently looking at potential sites.

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