March 23, 2011

2 local Walmarts approved to add wine kiosks

Walmarts in Pennsylvania to get wine dispensing kiosks

2 local Walmarts approved to add wine kiosks - LancasterOnline.com News

You might be able to pick up a bottle of wine along with your groceries, socks and video games this summer.

Two local Walmart stores are in line to open wine kiosks.

The stores on the Lincoln Highway East and on East Main Street in Ephrata Township are among 24 Walmart stores in Pennsylvania that have been approved as possible locations for the kiosks, said Stacey Witalec, spokeswoman for the state Liquor Control Board.

Contracts for the kiosks still need to be finalized, which could take a few months, she said.

Managers at the two Walmarts said they either had not received notification about the kiosks or referred calls to public relations officials with the store's corporate office in Bentonville, Ark.

Jason Klipa, a company spokesman, said no specific launch date has been set for the kiosks, which expand the products the stores now offer.

"We believe the kiosk will provide our customers additional convenience and allow them to continue to count on Walmart for a wide range of their shopping needs," he said.

The kiosks would be the second and third to be approved for operation in Lancaster County.

The first kiosk to receive approval is slated to open at Musser's Market, at 3985 Columbia Ave.

Musser's officials anticipated that kiosk would open this month but that has not happened. Witalec said there is no timeline yet for the opening of that kiosk.
The temperature-controlled wine kiosks stock about 500 bottles and about 45 varieties of wine.

Customers must do several things to operate the kiosk. First, they have to insert their driver's license and stand before a camera built into the machine.
Their image will be sent to a call center, where a state employee will check the customer's image against their driver's license picture.

Customers also must blow into a machine that measures their blood-alcohol content. If the level is at .02 percent or higher, the sale will not take place.
Customers must use a credit and debit cards at the kiosk.
Stores housing the kiosk don't benefit financially. Rather, the kiosk acts as a draw, bringing in customers who want to purchase wine when they are doing grocery or other types of shopping.
More than 30 kiosks are in operation in the state.
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2 local Walmarts approved to add wine kiosks - LancasterOnline.com News

Posted by keefner at March 23, 2011 03:38 PM