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From coast to coast, the craft beer scene is exploding all across the country. And for the brands and customer engagement marketers that can manage it, jumping onboard makes a whole lot of business sense. Finding a great selection of aromatic new microbrews and colorful seasonal collections from impassioned local brewers is a customer experience that can now transcend the traditional liquor store, and it is one Kroger is starting to offer.
Kroger, in many cases, already offers a wide section of beers. But now the grocery juggernaut is taking its craft beer concept a step further by installing in-store tasting stations and beer taps in a number of stores this fall. What’s more, the new customer experience will also allow enthusiasts to bring in their own growlers to fill with fresh craft beer straight from the tap.
“Wine and growler bars are a natural evolution for our adult beverage departments — by adding growlers, we are able to introduce our customers to new and emerging breweries that are only available on draft,” said Jason Milburn, Kroger’s national beer coordinator. “It gives our customers a great experience in store and offers them more variety, hard to find beer items, and the ability to support local breweries in an entirely new way.”
A select few Kroger’s in Columbus, Atlanta, Arizona, and some stores across the Pacific Northwest have already tested the initiative. But now plans to bring the beer taps to stores in Lexington, Memphis, Little Rock, Richmond, and Los Alamos will take effect.
Further taps are also soon slated to appear in the Cincinnati and Dayton markets as well.
The idea is to give shoppers a unique in-store customer experience that is more interactive and engaging, local and relevant. It’s also a way to introduce customers to many new smaller microbreweries that can bring their own color and local flair into stores.
In this respect, Cincinnati appears to be an ideal choice for the new offering since the city’s recent, and on-going, revitalization has been a huge boon for both urban development and the craft beer industry. After seeing significant growth in regions all across the west, Cincinnati is also experiencing it’s own craft beer renaissance as one of the fastest growing craft beer towns in the country.
Cincinnati also happens to be the corporate headquarters of Kroger, which continues to drive its brand-wide mission of putting the customer first in every respect.
This new craft beer initiative appears to be a step further along that path, as it highlights another aspect of its enduring commitment to offer new, exciting and, most importantly, relevant customer experiences to its shoppers.