With all eyes on Georgia for the Senate elections tonight — and possibly for the next few days — it might be a good time to order in.
Boston-headquartered alcohol e-commerce marketplace Drizly announced today that its service is now available to the 4.4 million people in Atlanta and its surrounding suburbs via partnerships with retail partners A&M Beverage Company, ABC Package, Atlanta Package, Fairington Wine & Spirits, HD Wine Spirits, Canton Package, Johns Creek Wine & Crystal, Pinkies Up Beer, Racetrack Foodmart, Savi Provisions, Side Door Liquors, The Savvy Cellars, Tower Beer, Wine & Spirits and Tucker Wine, Beer & Spirits.
Consumers age 21 and older can now place orders through Drizly’s app and receive their alcohol in under an hour.
“Atlanta has been on Drizly’s radar for years now, so we were eager and ready to start connecting adults of legal drinking age with local retailers for at-home delivery as soon as legislation passed and regulations were finalized,” Drizly COO Cathy Lewenberg said in a press release. “Even before operating in the state, millions of potential customers have been coming to Drizly seeking to use the service. We know in these unprecedented times that consumers are looking to delivery services as a safer alternative, and that this offering can be a critical diversification strategy for retailers to grow their business. We are looking forward to teaming up with our local partners to now bring that service to Atlanta residents, just in time for the new year.”
Home delivery of beer, wine and spirits from restaurants, bars, convenience stores, and some package, retail and grocery stores was permitted to begin in November after Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp signed House Bill 879 in August, according to Eater Atlanta. However, the extension of privileges excluded breweries and distilleries but included brewpubs that derive at least half of its revenue via food sales.
Drizly, whose service is now available in more than 1,400 cities in North America, reported that sales on its platform increased 350% year-over-year in 2020.
In November, Drizly head of consumer insights Liz Paquette discussed e-commerce trends in 2020 on the debut edition of Brewbound Data Club. Paquette shared that e-commerce sales exploded in the U.S. at the outset of the pandemic and penetration accelerated to about 10 years’ growth in just three months. Those sales have normalized recently but are still “lightyears beyond where we would have expected to be at this time,” she said.
In other Drizly Group news, the company’s spinoff cannabis e-commerce marketplace and delivery platform, Lantern, announced plans to expand to the Colorado market in early 2021 starting in Aurora. The move would make Lantern the first on-demand recreational cannabis delivery service in the state.