Drinks Merchants

Hello, and welcome to Drinks Merchants, a new magazine-style platform aimed solely at the UK’s drinks trade. Whether you’re an independent merchant, importing or distributing drinks, or a drinks producer, we aim to be your go-to source of up-to-date information and advice on everything relating to the business. The UK drinks market has undergone what is probably one of the most turbulent periods in its history. With the Covid pandemic resulting in government-mandated widespread closures, many businesses have not survived. And those that have emerged from the wreckage are now struggling to keep their businesses afloat, hamstrung by staff shortages, soaring costs, and in some parts of the country, ongoing Covid restrictions. Brexit hasn’t helped the situation either, exacerbating the difficulties in recruiting staff, supply shortages and delays, and adding additional costs and endless red tape to business operations. Drinks Merchants aims to tackle all these issues and more; from how to harness social media to enhance your profile, to putting together a comprehensive drinks portfolio, dealing with the ever-changing laws and supply chain issues, and how to manage staff recruitment and other HR issues in these challenging times. We will be running profiles on some of the most interesting people in the industry including features on innovative, up-and-coming producers, importers, distributors, and independent merchants, which have survived the pandemic, expert’s advice on training staff, keeping a profitable drinks list and top tips from leading professionals. We’ll be talking to importers and distributors on how they are overcoming the challenges posed by Brexit and Covid, and how they have had to adapt their businesses. Drinks Merchants will also be highlighting recent emerging trends such as the increasing use of technology and things such as rising drinks trends.