7-Eleven ‘Voyages’ into The Wine Market

7-Eleven just entered the competitive alcohol industry with a new private label wine called Voyager Point. The company claims that when these wines were tested, their private label products were favored by consumers over top-selling wine brands. Voyager Point can be found in three varieties; Cabernet Sauvignon (sourced from California), Red Blend and Sauvignon Blanc (sourced from New Zealand). Now, if you know 7-Eleven, you would know they have been selling wine for decades. However, the company is trying to fill the gap for a premium priced option. The 750-ml bottles are suggested to be priced at $9.99.

In an effort to appeal to millennials, the wine is designed with a “modern” and bold label. Manufacturers also added a screw off top that preserves the freshness of the wine. Packaging plays a big role in consumer loyalty. When walking through a grocery store, consumers tend to lean towards the packaging they recognize and trust. 7-Eleven added a small pin-point design on their label, very much resembling the one found on the ‘map’ apps on cell phones. This could possibly add a sense of creativity and relatability to the targeted millennial demographic.

“Playful packaging reminds us as consumers to slow down, enjoy a moment just for the sake of enjoying it, and let ourselves be surprised sometimes. And as packaging engineers, it reminds us not to take ourselves too seriously,” Dr. Hurley, Associate Professor of Food, Nutrition and Packaging Sciences at Clemson University stated in an article.

In addition, the demand for premium, high-quality products has gone up and continues to do so. Excluding natural food stores and grocery stores, convenient stores saw the highest premium wine and energy drink sales. The U.S itself was ranked as the fourth largest wine producing country in 2016. In fact, the average wine consumption calculated per resident was 2.94 gallons in 2016. This seems to be a promising market for the company. However, this label launch doesn’t just put 7-Eleven in competition with convenient stores, but also other grocers trying to do the same, like Walmart.

Walmart had released a private label wine of their own this year called Winemakers Selection. The 10 wines, sourced from California and France were introduced in 1, 100 stores across America. This launch came after Trader Joe’s, Lidl and Aldi had also released their own private labels. Is 7-Eleven playing a dangerous game by entering a list with these retail giants? They seem to believe that they’re off to a good start with the quality and price of their wines. If 7-Eleven’s manufacturers got the marketing, packaging and pricing right they might just have a chance against these other grocers.

“More and more wine- drinkers are willing to pay a few extra dollars to move up to higher quality, higher price point wines. We need to have options for our wine-drinking customers when they decide to trade up – one that is better quality than the top national brands and at a better price,” 7-Eleven Senior Director of Private Brands, Tim Cogil said in a press release.