The increased costs associated with tariffs impact all of us, affecting millions of people. Retailers of all kinds across Illinois import many of the goods they sell. Tariffs have created more uncertainty for retailers than many have ever experienced. The Illinois Retail Merchants Association has found that while retailers are trying to hold-off on price increases, it’s impossible to absorb the extra expenses for numerous business owners who function on very small margins – which forces consumers to pay more.
Retailers like Zach Sweet, co-owner of It’s All About Wine in Springfield, enrich our economy and strengthen our communities, even during the uncertainty of increased tariff expenses. To better understand how It’s All About Wine is dealing with the escalation of existing tariffs, we sat down for a conversation with Zach.
Somewhat reminiscent of the smash-hit TV sitcom of the 1980s, Cheers, with its iconic theme song of “Where Everybody Knows Your Name,” regulars huddled around a neat ring of tables inside It’s All About Wine in Springfield, where they sipped on their favorite varietals of chardonnay, cabernet, and everything in between.
This neighborhood brick-and-mortar opened its doors in 2006, establishing itself as the Capital City’s cozy and inviting wine destination. But the store is more than just a wine outlet. By day, Zach Sweet, who owns It’s All About Wine with his wife, Nancy, and father-in-law, John Roman, works the counter of the store selling beer, spirits, and of course, wine. At night, the store turns into a boutique wine bar, where customers come together to sip and share stories in a community setting with a well-earned reputation as a neighborhood hangout.
“You can come in and open a bottle and enjoy a glass of it. You can drink the whole bottle if you’d like. Or if you don’t finish it, you can cork it and take it with you,” stated Zach. “People consider It’s All About Wine a very welcoming spot. They just feel comfortable here.”
It’s All About Wine features educational classes, wine tastings, open mic nights, and live music; whatever it takes to bring together the community for the camaraderie of wine – with perhaps a few customers sipping on an IPA or bourbon neat.
We sat down with Zach Sweet to better understand his concerns about what rising tariff costs will mean for his business.
IRMA: What are your general thoughts about the tariffs and how they will likely impact wine sales?
ZACH: The tariffs are, you know, you read about them almost daily. And it’s pretty nerve-wracking because you don’t really know what what’s going to happen. I mean, it changes constantly. One day he (President Trump) is saying 100%. Then a week later, it’s 50%. There’s still just the not knowing. It’s very frustrating.
The wine industry is projected to be hit pretty hard, because of the tariffs of many of these international countries. But it’s also going to hit us domestically, because wineries use glass. They import that. They use cardboard for their boxes. They import that. The corks come from overseas. We sell beer. Almost all of our beers are in aluminum cans, which is going to be hit with tariffs. So, it’s going to impact pretty much everything we touch here at It’s All About Wine.
IRMA: How much of what you sell here comes from overseas?
ZACH: I would say our product mix here is about 60/40 – 40% domestic and the rest from overseas. So, we have a pretty robust, overseas option here.
IRMA: Explain to me how the market works and how you get your wine. You don’t buy directly from a vineyard, correct?
ZACH: With the liquor industry in general, it’s a three-tier system is what they call it. So, we don’t buy directly from the wineries, we buy from a distributorship. I think we work with 16 different vendors that we buy from at It’s All About Wine.
You can’t buy direct. Well, I should say some of our smaller wineries, like some of our Illinois wineries that we carry, we do buy direct from them. But for the most part, you buy from a distributor. And so, they’re going to feel the impact of the tariffs which will then be passed on to us.
We’re starting to hear from distributors. I put in an order last week for a specific French wine, and the gentleman was out of that product, but he did inform me that it will be back in stock, but it will be going up in price. He did not tell me the exact dollar amount that it would be going up, but he did say, in fact, it would be going up in price because of the tariffs.
IRMA: Have you told customers that you think you’re going to have to raise prices? Or maybe you’re not going to be able to carry certain things because the price will be too high?
ZACH: My wife and I have been talking about how we want to approach the cost increase. We’re still just kind of waiting to see how dramatic it is going to be. We don’t know yet, unfortunately. It’s kind of a guessing game right now, because there’s no certainty yet with how much what percentage are going to be raised.
IRMA: I’m sure you have thought about the fact wine is not an essential part of our day. It’s not life-sustaining. So, have you had the thought that if the prices go up too much, it could be prohibitive for people to come to buy that bottle of wine once a week?
ZACH: Yes, we know wine is not an essential product that you have to have in your life. You don’t need it. We understand that. So, there is a tipping point. You know, if costs get too high, it could impact us immensely here. So, we are trying to focus in a little more on budget-friendly wines. There are a lot of affordable wines out there.
One thing we feel good about here is that we have built this community. We survived COVID. It was not easy. But a big part of navigating through that was our clientele. We have a very loyal customer base. We’re very much relying on our customers to support us through this, like they did through the pandemic.
To learn more about It’s All About Wine, visit https://itsallaboutwine.net/.
