An interesting op-ed in which the owner of Blinking Owl Distillery, Santa Ana, Calif., says hand sanitizer production “which brought much-needed revenue but not profit” and the “foresighted action by the state Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) to allow us to ship our bottles directly to consumers, including through online sales” enabled his distillery to avoid being killed by Covid-19.
In the piece, Ryan Friesen urges the California Legislature to make permanent the ability for craft distillers to ship direct to consumers.
“Direct-to-consumer shipping offers small brands that were just able to eke out survival during Covid a chance to regain their footing, keep the lights on, and grow their brand to a sustainable level. Just because we reopened, doesn’t mean we are recovered,” he says.