How Costco Lost Its Title As The Largest Wine Retailer In The US

For a long time, Costco held the title of largest wine retailer in the U.S. In 2016, the store reported earning $1.69 billion from wine sales alone, and by 2023 it was making up to $7 billion a year in alcohol sales, with wine accounting for nearly half of that revenue. Costco's popular wines are sold at competitive prices, and, in some states, even non-members can buy liquor. It seemed like nothing could steal Costco's monopoly on wine profits — until Total Wine & More came along. The company recently surpassed Costco in wine sales and became America's new largest wine retailer.

Even though Total Wine & More only has 275 stores to Costco's 605, it managed to become people's favorite pick for purchasing quality wine at affordable prices. In fact, Total Wine & More is aiming to have the lowest prices on the wine market. The company will even check out the prices at Costco just to ensure its are lower. The independent wine store is able to keep prices so low by pushing its private label products (though they are sold under various different names unlike Costco which sells all of its own wine under the Kirkland Signature label), and by building strong relationships with its suppliers and purchases directly from wineries when possible.

The story of how Costco lost its title as the largest wine retailer in the U.S. is really about how Total Wine & More nabbed it. The wine-centric company was built from the ground up by two brothers, Robert and David Trone, who opened their first store in 1991. Since then, the number of wine stores has only kept growing — the pair has yet to close a single location. They also take care of their own, so to speak. Total Wine & More employs 11,000 people, 427 of whom are wine experts. The company provides promotion opportunities for its employees, as well as continuous training that includes weekly wine tastings and monthly seminars. But wine tastings aren't just for staff — in states where it's legal, the wine retailer offers in-store tastings to its customers too. For those who want to learn more about wine, Total Wine & More also offers educational tastings, classes, and events, as connecting with the customers is one of its foundational principles.

With over 8,000 wines available in its stores, Total Wine & More does its best to make shopping a non-confusing experience by displaying together the wines of the same variety and separating them based on whether they're Old World or New World. And, much like Costco, it is leaning heavily into the digital realm with an app, delivery options, and electronic gift cards. Considering the sales numbers, the strategy is clearly working.