LiquorLand (sometimes referred to as Liquorland) is a franchise of independently owned bottle shops around New Zealand, operated by Foodstuffs. ^[2] LiquorLand is part of the Fly Buys and Airpoints loyalty schemes. ^[1]

Brands

LiquorLand (1981-present)

LiquorLand was established in 1981 as a franchise of independently owned liquor stores. ^[1] By 2002, under the ownership of DB Breweries, it had 72 stores. ^[3] By 2005, it had 80 stores. ^[4]

Foodstuffs purchased the franchise in 2009 for an undisclosed sum. ^[5] Woolworths Group had also attempted to purchase the chain. ^[6]

Birds Liquorsave (1991-2005)

Birds Liquorsave was established in Hamilton in 1991. It had seven stores in Hamilton, Rotorua, Thames and Tauranga by 2005. ^[7]

The Mill took over Birds Liquorsave in 2005, rebranding the stores as The Mill Liquorsave. ^{[7] [8]} The stores were converted into LiquorLand stores, after Foodstuffs purchased The Mill in 2015. ^[9]

The Mill (1993-2015)

The Mill was established in New Plymouth in 1993. ^[10] It had 24 stores in 2004, ^[9] and had 31 stores by 2005. ^[7] It took over Birds Liquorsave in October 2005, rebranding the stores as The Mill Liquorsave. ^[7] It also introduced no-frills stores in March 2006. ^[8]

Independent Brewers, a Papakura-based alcohol company owned by Asahi Breweries, ^[11] purchased The Mill franchise in May 2013. ^[10] The franchise reached 35 stores; most were located in the North Island but none were located in Auckland. ^[12]

Independent Brewers sold The Mill to Foodstuffs for an undisclosed sum in October 2015, ^[13] The stores were converted into LiquorLand stores. ^[9] None of the stores were located in Auckland.

Duffy & Finn's (2006-2010)

Foodstuffs established the Duffy & Finn's alcohol chain in 2006. The first outlet, a small liquor store, opened in Porirua in August. The second outlet, a $1 million 800m² large-format store, opened in Pukekohe in November. ^{[14] [15]}

The chain was based on Australian liquor chain Dan Murphy's. At the time, Woolworths Group had been understood to be planning to expand the chain to New Zealand. ^[16]

The Duffy and Finn's store was phased out following Foodstuffs' purchase of LiquorLand in 2009. ^[5] The two stores were continuing to operate in 2011. ^{[17] [18]} The brand was removed from the Foodstuffs website in the last three months of that year. ^{[18] [19]}

Henry's Beer, Wine & Spirits (2006-2023)

The first Henry's store was opened in Queenstown in October 2006. ^[16]

Foodstuffs purchased nine Imperial Discount Liquor stores in Kaikōura, Rangiora and Christchurch, rebranding them as Henry's from June 2007. ^[16] The Imperial Discount Liquor franchise had been operating since 2004. ^[20]

From late 2022, Foodstuffs began to phase out the Henry's Beer, Wine & Spirit brand. All 19 stores were converted to LiquorLand with the last store rebranding at the end of February 2023.

History

During the initial COVID-19 lockdown in March and April 2020, Foodstuffs was required to close its liquor stores and shift to online sales. ^[21] When the stores were allowed to reopen, they began surveying customers on how the stores and website could be improved. ^[22]

In 2021, Foodstuffs reached an agreement with The Trusts, to allow some of its WestLiquor stores in West Auckland to be re-branded as LiquorLand. ^[23] Under the agreement, Foodstuffs can make recommendations on pricing. ^[24]

References