Tops Adds to Number of PA Stores Selling Beer, Wine

Tops Markets LLC has expanded the number of stores in which shoppers can buy beer and wine to now include its Meadville, Pa., location. The grocer recently received a Wine Expanded Permit (WEP) to distribute both wine and beer at the store, permitting shoppers to purchase up to 3 liters – or about four bottles – of wine) and 192 ounces of beer per transaction.

Initially, the store will offer more than 300 SKUs of wine, 150 of which are local products, and 280-plus beer varieties, with that number set to expand to nearly 1,000. Both beer and wine can be purchased during normal store hours.

“We’re thrilled to be able to offer our shoppers the added convenience and value of purchasing their wine and beer while shopping with us,” said Kristen Hanson, Tops’ VP of center store sales and merchandising. “If it is wine that they are seeking, customers are able to select from a wide variety of sizes, from single bottles and multipacks to even a limited-release 750-milliter bottle. If beer is more to their liking, we offer everything from lagers and ales to the hoppiest IPAs and all the brands [shoppers] love.”

The ability for grocery stores to sell wine in Pennsylvania was made possible under the Pennsylvania Modernization Act, which was signed in June 2016. The program was first piloted at the Warren and Erie, Pa., Tops locations last fall before rolling out to the Meadville store.

Other Pennsylvania grocers to offer wine in their stores following the enactment of the law include Weis Markets.

Williamsville, N.Y.-based Tops operates 172 supermarkets, with five additional run by franchisees under the Tops banner. The grocer employs more than 15,000 associates in New York, northern Pennsylvania, western Vermont and north central Massachusetts.