Tuesday, July 8, 2014

The History of PLCB Modernization since the late 1970's




And the future yet to come












Same pig, different shade of lipstick

20 comments:

  1. This is the worst photoshop I've seen since you used o propagate the fake screenshots from the LCB website.

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  2. It's not medium, it's the message. Main difference between this and what the UFCW says is...we're kidding. They're lying.

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  3. It ain't even Photoshop it is just cut & paste in Paint. I did it half-assed to keep in the PLCB tradition.

    I'm not sure what you men by the other part so link it please or at least post the title.

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  4. It may be just a different shade of lipstick on the pig but it also points out another problem. If you travel the state you will see all of the signage used for the stores over the past 100 years. With each new board chairman or CEO they want to create their own brand. The problem is they spend your money to start the project but never finish the job. So in the end you have a collection of stores with no consistency. Sound familiar. Customer service training? Wine training? What you get is a typical government agency operating inefficiently.

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  5. Absolutely. As of June 24th it has taken 6.25 years to do 10% of the stores.....a 60 year schedule. How much would you like to bet it never gets finished?

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  6. Well, at least I don't have to stand at a counter and watch the guy walk into the back room to bring me my bottle like I did in the 70s.

    But that's certainly not progress in the modern sense, either.

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  7. You know it took over 36 years from the first self-serve store opened until the last counter store closed. Gives an idea how long "rebranding" will take....if not longer.

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  8. There is still a counter store in Pittsburgh

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  9. For retail? None of the audits since 2005 list a counter store for retail.

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  10. Robinson Blvd in the Penn Hills area. There may be more. When some self serve stores became a problem they were converted back. At least that was the case at Robinson.

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  11. LOL. this reminds me of one of those human evolution charts. You could have had State Store first and Liquor Store second in the early years, then the rest leading up to the excellent stores we have now.

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  12. Yes Al there is at least one counter store still in operation. I can verify this with first hand knowledge.

    Here is their info:
    Pa Wine & Spirits Store 0280
    2800 Robinson Blvd

    Pittsburgh,, (gotta love the patented PLCB "double comma!") PA 15235 - 1461
    [Penn Hills Twp]

    Phone: (412) 473 - 4204 Mon
    Tue
    Wed
    Thu
    Fri
    Sat
    Sun 11:00 - 09:00
    11:00 - 09:00
    09:00 - 09:00
    09:00 - 09:00
    09:00 - 09:00
    09:00 - 09:00
    Closed

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  13. And yes it is 100% a retail store as well as one with a few licensees.

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  14. I'll have o look into the Robinson Blvd store. Could you give me a hint as to what city so I don't have to look at all 600 stores to find it.

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  15. See above. "There is still a counter store in Pittsburgh".

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  16. Amazing, why would people even go there?

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  17. To get their booze?

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  18. Does it have the little forms you used to have to fill out or do you just tell the guy what you want?

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  19. Modernization may be a lie... but despite the PLCB and UFCW being in bed together, I have a spicy story for you: on the website "Foursquare", the manager of a certain PLCB wholesale store (hint: the only one in Greater Philadelphia that is NOT in Philadelphia itself) reviewed the Walmart Supercenter store in Woodbury, NJ saying it had "great food shopping" and was so happy the groceries were "a fraction of the price" as at local supermarkets. I smell traitor! Even before Walmart sold groceries, they were protested by the more ardent union supporters for their union busting. Hmmm, now I wonder what this manager was doing in NJ anyway... buying a little something to complement those Walmart foods perhaps? This "something" is perhaps a fraction of the price in NJ at ANY store in that state compared to prices in PA...

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