How to Open a Liquor Store: Licensing, Location and Layout

Opening a liquor store is unlike opening most retail businesses: the license comes first, and it decides where you can open, how you buy, and sometimes what you can sell. The building comes after.

1. Learn your state's rules

Alcohol retail is regulated by each state, and often by counties and cities too. Before anything else, find out:

• Whether your state licenses private retailers for beer, wine and spirits, or sells some products itself. Some states, known as control states, sell spirits through state stores or agents.
• Whether licenses are capped and how they're issued.
• What the license costs and how long approval takes.

Your state's alcohol beverage control agency publishes these rules.

2. Find a site that qualifies

Many places restrict alcohol retail by zoning and by distance from schools, churches or other license holders. Check those rules before signing a lease. Then check the usual retail factors: traffic, access, visibility and competition. See choosing a location.

3. Apply for the license

Expect background checks, site details and public notice in many places. Some applications need a floor plan of the premises.

4. Set up suppliers

Most states use a system where retailers buy from licensed wholesalers or distributors, not directly from producers. Your license determines who you can buy from.

5. Design the store

The layout decisions that matter most:

• The cold wall. Beer and some wine sell cold. A walk-in behind glass doors, or a beer cave, is usually the largest equipment item. See the cooler wall planner and beer cave cost.
• Navigation. Clear sections for beer, wine and spirits.
• Security. High-value spirits near checkout or in locked cases, and secure back-room storage.
• Checkout. Visible from the door and the high-value aisles.

Our liquor store floor plan guide covers layout in detail.

Our work

We design and build liquor stores, including Majestic Liquor, designed from the ground up, and Stillwater Spirits. See them on the projects page, and see liquor store design for how we work.