People are always loving alcohol deliveries through their preferred food delivery apps, such as DoorDash. However, in Pennsylvania, did you know that alcohol deliveries are not yet available? What’s wrong?
Same-day delivery drivers in 37 states, that’s right, are having fun doing business with customers who order alcoholic beverages from apps like DoorDash and Instacart. But the Coal State is not one of them.
Is there something wrong? Ridesharing Forum dug deep into research to find out Pennsylvania’s take on alcohol.
Well, according to research, Pennsylvania does not vehemently “hate” alcohol, especially since it is one of the country’s top producers of beer and whiskey. However, it enforces really strict and restrictive regulations rooted in post-Prohibition era, “the dry legacy,” and the events under former Governor Gifford Pinchot in the 1920s and 1930s.
Also, Pennsylvania operates a state-controlled liquor system, imposing an 18 percent Johnstown Flood Tax on spirits, and restricts sales to certain outlets, thereby creating a highly regulated environment instead of an anti-alcohol one. Makes sense.
“Love 'em or hate 'em, it is widely acknowledged that Pennsylvania’s state-run liquor stores could be more customer-convenient if the governor and Legislature really wanted them to be,” Penn Live Patriot-News seconded the motion.
Also, there is an ongoing thread on Reddit questioning, “Why are Pennsylvania’s liquor laws so backwards and inhospitable to small businesses?” Curiosity is the middle name.
“These restrictions are counterproductive and hinder the development of small businesses to a certain degree,” the Redditor said.
However, these could change very soon, as the state’s House Liquor Control Committee told Ridesharing Forum it is working on changing the landscape in the state with regards to ordering liquor via food delivery apps.
Tom Kerr, the Adult Beverage Alliance general counsel, reasoned out, “It is working in those states. So, this bill provides the benefit of years of experience in working on similar legislation and gives Pennsylvania businesses an opportunity to benefit from a mature industry that is now operating, again, in more than 30 states.”
Where the law works, or in those states, smaller businesses have benefited the most, with sales rising to 40 percent year-over-year, according to a DoorDash representative. So that answers the argument on Reddit.
“It’s become an amazing revenue lever for small and medium-sized merchants in particular, particularly in this age where more consumers are expecting to have everything delivered,” they stated.
This soon-to-be regulation will also open opportunities for the around 500 different businesses holding licenses to deliver beer and wine across Pennsylvania.
However, this convenience, albeit craved, leaves the Coal State’s authorities and regulators worried about the consequences, with the top-of-mind being, customers of minor age would have access to these drinks.
“Compliance depends on whether delivery personnel, using the service of such licenses, follow through and exercise due diligence,” Robert Bailey, the bureau director for Liquor Control Enforcement, told Ridesharing Forum.