The Liquor Control Board Thursday released its 2016-17 Annual Report and Retail Year in Review, two publications that provide insight into agency operations and sales.
The annual report, in its fifth year, provides detailed information about each area of the PLCB's operations including store operations, licensing, marketing and merchandising, finance, supply chain, wholesale operations, information technology, alcohol education, and personnel.
The document includes statistics and descriptions intended to shed light on how the agency works and where the money it generates goes.
Some of the highlights of the 2016-17 Annual Report include:
-- The steps the PLCB took to implement the historic changes brought about by Act 39 of 2016, including the creation of a new Wholesale Operations division.
-- A one-page summary showing where the PLCB's money goes and how proceeds are distributed.
-- A summary of store operations, including store branding efforts.
-- A breakdown of the 71,000+ license and permit applications processed and more than 7,500 investigations completed, as well as a breakout of licenses by county.
-- A summary of Bureau of Alcohol Education grants and efforts to reduce and prevent dangerous and underage drinking.
The Retail Year in Review provides a detailed analysis of wine and spirits sales in Pennsylvania. It showcases sales by product category, individual products, counties, e-commerce, stores, and sales periods.
Tracking consumer tastes across Pennsylvania and beverage alcohol industry trends enables the PLCB to analyze and improve its selection of products in more than 600 Fine Wine & Good Spirits stores across the state.
This year's report includes a new feature detailing sales of products traditionally associated with New Year's Eve, St. Patrick's Day, and Cinco de Mayo, as well as an expanded section on sales of Pennsylvania-made products.
The 2016-17 Retail Year in Review includes the following findings:
-- Allegheny, Philadelphia and Montgomery counties accounted for more than a third of the state's total wine and spirits sales.
-- The top five brands (by sales volume) in the commonwealth were Barefoot, Sutter Home, Pennsylvania's own Jacquin's, Captain Morgan, and Smirnoff.
-- December 2016 and November 2016 were the highest sales months for the retail year, both in terms of dollar sales and number of transactions.
-- Tito's Handmade Vodka (750 mL) topped the list of products for units sold during the retail year, while Jack Daniel's Tennessee Whiskey Old Number 7 (750 mL) achieved the highest dollar sales among individual products.
-- Of the higher-volume counties, Lancaster, Philadelphia, and Northampton showed impressive sales growth over the prior year, with 5.7 percent, 5.2 percent, and 5.4 percent growth, respectively.
