With summer now in full swing, many restaurant and liquor store owners are faced with the same question: what will this season look like for my business? Will people hop on a plane or into their cars to seek adventure far away from home, or will the rising costs of fuel, food, and nearly everything in between cause people to stay closer to home? Recent travel reports reveal that while many remain enthusiastic about travelling this summer, embracing a pandemic-free season, travel plans may look a little different this year due to continuing inflation concerns. Restaurants and liquor stores, like most other businesses, are also faced with the consequences of inflation, and if you are a business owner you know that keeping your hand on the pulse of who your customers will be this summer (and how long they will be staying) has never been more important.

A recent BevAlc Insights (by Drizly) report comments on the “premiumization trend” that surfaced during the pandemic, referring to when “consumers were trading up to higher-priced products across the beverage alcohol spectrum”, a trend that lasted well into the past year. As nights at home became standard during the pandemic, many upgraded their typical selections at the liquor store or online ordering platform to treat themselves.

A recent BevAlc Insights by Drizly report reveals that in the past 12 months, Drizly has seen over 400 new RTD cocktail SKUs (stock keeping units) added to their catalog! Clearly, growth in this category is not slowing down any time soon. Local businesses should take note, because “By location, Boston; Northern New Jersey; Long Island, New York; Nashville; and Providence, Rhode Island all over-indexed on RTD sales on Drizly in that [12 month] time period”.

The newly established View Boston’s restaurant and lounge just paid $600,000 for their full liquor license, a price tag that has turned some heads. It seems that the price of full liquor licenses in Boston is currently at an all-time high, with the city’s restaurant and bar scene looking much different post-pandemic, as many establishments closed their doors. However, many new restaurants and bars have begun to open their doors, although who exactly is able to open these doors is resulting in some controversy.