Marin County, CA: The Northern California tech company, Merchant23, just announced that their platform now enables Wineries, Distilleries, Breweries, and Importers to sell their products Direct-to-Trade in all 50 states. Through Merchant23’s network of nationwide clearing Distributors, any Seller can sell their wholesale products to any licensed Buyer in the United States.
“Our goal is that any Seller who has an interested Buyer, whether it be at a trade show or in their own tasting room, they should be able to sell to them,” said Jacob Moynihan, CEO of Merchant23. “Thanks to our supply chain, logistics, and distribution partners, a Seller never has to turn down a PO again.”
Sellers wishing to sell through the Merchant23 platform have two options; they can use Merchant23’s clearing Distributors for single orders or they can upload products to the live Marketplace. The Merchant23 Marketplace is an online ‘catalog’ that displays all products listed by Sellers. Any Buyer with an ABC license number can create an account, view wholesale pricing, message the Seller, and place an order. Merchant23 handles all logistics and facilitates distribution, as well as assisting Sellers with necessary state compliance.
“We’ve been using Merchant23 for well over a year and it has been a tremendous partnership for us. All the staff are incredibly helpful and enthusiastic about selling our wine. They’ve been able to connect us with Buyers both large and small. This has helped us here at Wine Guerrilla sell over 2,000 cases of wine through the Merchant23 platform while being able to focus on creating great wines and experiences.”- Matt Railla, Owner of Wine Guerrilla Winery
When Merchant23 launched in January of 2016, their platform was only available for Direct-to-Trade wine sales. The response from Buyers across the country was so positive that Merchant23 has now expanded into beer and spirits. Larry Venezia, Buyer at Giles Wine & Spirits in Massachusetts stated, “Merchant23 gives me the ability to find great values for my customers that separate us from other wine retailers. Merchant23 is the partner that I have sought out for many years in the wine business.”
There are key differentiating factors between Merchant23 and the other wholesale solutions currently offered in the US market:
- The Merchant23 platform is free. It does not cost anything for Buyers or Sellers to create an account. A transaction fee, distribution fee, and shipping fee are built on top of the Seller’s FOB prices before being offered to Buyers.
- Seller’s own their inventory. Merchant23 does not buy or take title of products, they belong to the Seller until a PO is created.
- Merchant23 enables Buyers and Sellers in all 50 states to conduct business. If a Seller has an interested Buyer in North Carolina, Texas, Rhode Island, or all three, they can now do business directly with them thanks to Merchant23’s distribution partners who take title of products as they enter the state of the Buyer.
Merchant23 has facilitated orders of all size, from one case of Napa wine for a restaurant in Texas, to truckloads of rum to a multi-state retailer. Any Seller of wholesale alcohol can create an account and begin uploading their products instantly. Buyer’s in all 50 states can create an account and create POs instantly. This digital approach to Direct-to-Trade sales is, in Merchant23’s own words, ‘Distribution Simplified’.
