DES MOINES, Iowa — The way people buy and sell alcohol has changed in the pandemic.
It started with take-home cocktails in 2020, and this year, Gov. Reynolds signed a law allowing third-party vendors like Instacart and Uber to deliver alcohol to homes.
It's something two local businesses are using to expand their company as the winter months approach.
One of the companies is WineStyles, where customers can currently only purchase their products in-store or curbside pickup.
But Matthew Sieren, the general manager of WineStyles in West Des Moines, said same-day delivery will be an option before the month is over.
"Definitely with the changing times. Everyone is looking for a different way to get the product into someone's hands, and definitely with third party delivery we might find customers that otherwise wouldn't find us," Sieren said.
Winestyles has been ironing out the kinks of partnering with Drizly the past few months. It's the third-party delivery company they will be using.
One big area of focus: making sure if an order is placed, the correct request comes through and that inventory levels and prices are reflected correctly.
"There's a great feature that if we don't have something in stock or our inventory is off, they can allow for substitutions and that allows us and our expertise and knowledge to point them down a path to a product they hadn't looked for," Sieren told Local 5.
While WineStyles same-day delivery launches soon, the owner of Kinship Brewing Company, Zach Dobeck, said using a third-party vendor is an option he is currently exploring to continue helping his business.
"We're a young company. We're ten months in so any sort of obstacle that gets presented to us, we want to find ways around that, and coming on the other half of the pandemic there's always something that can kind of get in the way of our business," Dobeck said.
According to the Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division, 14 companies statewide have signed up for alcohol to be delivered through a third-party company so far.
The companies are listed below:
Local 5 asked Jake Holmes with Iowa ABD if a person orders alcohol, do they have to be present when it's delivered? He responded in part:
"Delivery shall not be made to a person who is intoxicated ... Valid proof of the recipient's identity and age shall be obtained at the time of delivery, and the signature of a person twenty-one years of age or older shall be obtained."
He also noted if a shipment of alcohol gets into the wrong hands, both the third-party vendor and the alcohol license or permit holder will be responsible.
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