Reasons why the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board should be abolished, and The Almighty Liquor Code completely overhauled and rewritten, to reflect over 80 years of change since Repeal.
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Do you know everything about vodka, yellowtail wines, and schlock liqueurs?
The PLCB is advertising an opening for Director of Product Selection. Good pay, too, starting at just under $61,000 to over $90,000, depending on experience.
Could someone with a freakin' clue please apply for this job?
Maybe we all should put in for it since I know I have more retail experience then anybody on the LCB. I mean look at Joe Conti, he doesn't have any experience running a $1.8 Billion dollar business (and it shows) but after owning 2 restaurants you'd think he might know something about the hassle the PLCB is but THEY DIDN'T HAVE A LIQUOR LICENSE!
PJ is a lawyer and certainly doesn't know anything about liquor or running a business let alone one this size
Goldsmith was at least a mayor so he should have an idea about how to run things but again, no retail.
Marcus is another ambulance chasing lawyer (his firm specializes in personal injury law) so the less said about that the better for him but it undoubtedly makes him eminently qualified to run a liquor business.
Yeah, that's it. I wrote this entire blog in joy at the current situation just so when a job would come open for product selection I could get really pissed off because I'm not qualified for it.
The position was given to Matthew Schwenk, who was formerly the chief category manager. And yes, he does have a freakin' clue. He's one of the good guys at the PLCB, but like the rest of them he's hamstrung by his organization's immense bureaucratic and political influences.
If you want a gesture of good faith, watch for the 70+ new spirits that are coming to the online store this summer and to specialty stores this fall. Matt did much of the work to make that happen.
That would be great, Nathan, and I'm sure Matthew is a stand-up guy...but the real problem here is that the buying decisions for the state's entire retail liquor and wine operation is being made in Harrisburg by committee. This isn't really about Matthew's credentials or character: I'm sure he'd do very well in a private system. It's about that ridiculous and inefficient bureaucracy...and how the Almighty Liquor Code that perpetuates it needs to be taken down to the banks of the Susquehanna and beaten to death with a shovel.
I'm not trying to dissuade you from your fight, Lew...just saying you got your wish: somebody with a clue got the job.
As far as committee-driven product selection goes, well, there's a reason they pulled ordering authority from the store managers. It was a cost-saving move: some managers were buying esoteric products they personally liked but were never able to sell. Private retailers have the prerogative to sit on useless inventory but not government agencies with a responsibility to the taxpayer.
Best we can do, at least until you and your rowdy bunch succeed in your political agenda, is to nudge that bureaucratic product selection committee in the right direction. Folks on both sides of the fence are keen to get in-store product selection into the 21st century, and we're willing to put in some effort with the promise that state stores might become a little more like real liquor stores. (Or in some cases, better. Scapa 16yr at $45?)
Personally, I've got more faith in the few people on the inside who're trying to make the best of the current system than I do in the legislature, who would have to find the balls to stand up to the unions and neo-prohibitionists and side with us folks who just want to buy a decent bottle of whiskey at a decent price. It may not say much about my principles, but I'll side with whoever puts Black Maple Hill and Benedictine on the shelf first.
At least they know what should be done however since somebody's brother-in-law will get the job it really doesn't matter now does it?
ReplyDeleteHa! Good one, AVB, and probably closer to the truth than we'd like to believe.
ReplyDeleteMaybe we all should put in for it since I know I have more retail experience then anybody on the LCB. I mean look at Joe Conti, he doesn't have any experience running a $1.8 Billion dollar business (and it shows) but after owning 2 restaurants you'd think he might know something about the hassle the PLCB is but THEY DIDN'T HAVE A LIQUOR LICENSE!
ReplyDeletePJ is a lawyer and certainly doesn't know anything about liquor or running a business let alone one this size
Goldsmith was at least a mayor so he should have an idea about how to run things but again, no retail.
Marcus is another ambulance chasing lawyer (his firm specializes in personal injury law) so the less said about that the better for him but it undoubtedly makes him eminently qualified to run a liquor business.
Lew you are just mad because you would never qualify for a job that pays that much. Let alone hold it.
ReplyDeleteYeah, that's it. I wrote this entire blog in joy at the current situation just so when a job would come open for product selection I could get really pissed off because I'm not qualified for it.
ReplyDeleteYou're a mental giant, you are.
Hey Anon,
ReplyDeleteWhose name in AVB's list belongs to you?
Love,
Sam
The position was given to Matthew Schwenk, who was formerly the chief category manager. And yes, he does have a freakin' clue. He's one of the good guys at the PLCB, but like the rest of them he's hamstrung by his organization's immense bureaucratic and political influences.
ReplyDeleteIf you want a gesture of good faith, watch for the 70+ new spirits that are coming to the online store this summer and to specialty stores this fall. Matt did much of the work to make that happen.
That would be great, Nathan, and I'm sure Matthew is a stand-up guy...but the real problem here is that the buying decisions for the state's entire retail liquor and wine operation is being made in Harrisburg by committee. This isn't really about Matthew's credentials or character: I'm sure he'd do very well in a private system. It's about that ridiculous and inefficient bureaucracy...and how the Almighty Liquor Code that perpetuates it needs to be taken down to the banks of the Susquehanna and beaten to death with a shovel.
ReplyDeleteI'm not trying to dissuade you from your fight, Lew...just saying you got your wish: somebody with a clue got the job.
ReplyDeleteAs far as committee-driven product selection goes, well, there's a reason they pulled ordering authority from the store managers. It was a cost-saving move: some managers were buying esoteric products they personally liked but were never able to sell. Private retailers have the prerogative to sit on useless inventory but not government agencies with a responsibility to the taxpayer.
Best we can do, at least until you and your rowdy bunch succeed in your political agenda, is to nudge that bureaucratic product selection committee in the right direction. Folks on both sides of the fence are keen to get in-store product selection into the 21st century, and we're willing to put in some effort with the promise that state stores might become a little more like real liquor stores. (Or in some cases, better. Scapa 16yr at $45?)
Personally, I've got more faith in the few people on the inside who're trying to make the best of the current system than I do in the legislature, who would have to find the balls to stand up to the unions and neo-prohibitionists and side with us folks who just want to buy a decent bottle of whiskey at a decent price. It may not say much about my principles, but I'll side with whoever puts Black Maple Hill and Benedictine on the shelf first.