Selling more wine doesn’t always mean making more money.
Plenty of shops hit their sales goals but still fall short on profit. If your bestselling bottles are only bringing in pennies, your shop might be busy but not making what it should.
Often, the issue isn’t one big mistake, but a mix of small ones — overstocking low-margin wines, pricing without a clear strategy, missing supplier discounts, or not tracking which products actually pay off.
In this article, we’ll break down typical wine profit margins, show you how to calculate yours, and share seven practical ways to help your shop earn more per bottle.
Wine profit margins depend heavily on what products you’re selling and who you’re selling them to. Most retail shops in the U.S. aim for margins between 30% and 50%, but those numbers can shift depending on sale price and volume.
Most wine shops fall within these general ranges:
These margin ranges vary because wholesale prices, brand reputation, local customer demand, and buying habits all affect what’s realistic for your shop.
Wine stores typically set a suggested retail price about 50% higher than the wholesale price, which gives retailers a roughly 33% gross profit if they sell at that price. While big chains often sell below that, most independent stores price close to the suggested level, especially on domestic wines.
Buying in volume can also help lower your initial costs — shops can typically receive discounts of 5% to 15% by ordering mixed cases or sticking to a single winery group, which can help improve margins when focusing on wines with higher profit potential.
To figure out your margin on any bottle, you can use this gross profit margin formula:
Profit margin (%) = (Sales price − Cost) ÷ Sales price × 100
For example, if a wine costs you $20 to purchase and sells for $40, then it has a 50% profit margin.
Ideally, you want to aim for margins around 45% to 50% across your product range — though, in reality, many retailers typically see margins between 30% and 50%, with higher-end wines delivering better returns.
Consistently tracking these numbers helps you figure out which wines are actually generating revenue and which ones are taking up shelf space.
Calculating and tracking your wine profit margins is a great first step, but the real legwork comes from applying the right strategies to maintain healthy margins.
Here are seven practical ways to improve your wine shop’s earnings in 2025 by focusing on pricing, inventory, customer engagement, and more.
Focus on carrying wines that strike a balance between quality and profit potential. Sparkling wines, premium whites, and sustainable brands often sell well and offer better margins, usually between 45% and 55%.
Here are some ways to put this into practice:
When customers connect with the story behind a bottle, whether it’s supporting small family farms or sustainable practices, they’re often willing to pay more.
A good POS system brings this all together by tracking which wines are bringing in the best margins, so you can focus your efforts on what’s selling well and what needs a little extra promotion.
It’s easy to overstock wines that don’t make much money, especially bottles priced under $10 wholesale. These tend to carry thin margins (sometimes under 30%) and don’t always move quickly.
Related Read: Liquor Store Inventory: A Quick Beginner’s Guide
Rather than keeping these wines on your shelves out of habit, use your sales data to make more intentional inventory choices.
Here’s how to handle low-margin inventory:
It’s not always a bad idea to keep lower-margin wines in stock — some may serve as more accessible entry points for customers or support broader appeal. But if they’re not pulling their weight, don’t be afraid to mark them down and make room for better performers.
The right POS system can also help you track margins by product, so you can make data-driven decisions that directly support your business’ financial goals.
Plenty of shops carry the same bottles. What sets yours apart is how you sell them.
This doesn’t mean you have to create a flashy, over-the-top customer experience — just one that’s thoughtful and catered towards your most loyal shoppers. A well-timed tasting, a quick conversation, or a pairing suggestion can be the reason someone remembers your store.
Here are a few ways to create a better shopping experience at your wine store:
When done well, these small touches help customers feel more confident, spend more per trip, and come back more often.
If your customers only hear from you when they walk into the store, you're missing out on opportunities to influence what they buy and where they buy it.
Consistent digital marketing efforts, well-timed local partnerships, and specific product highlights can help you move higher-margin wines and bring regulars back in the door.
Related Read: 9 Liquor Store Marketing Strategies To Start Using Today
Here are a few ways to build visibility and drive repeat business:
An industry-specific POS system can integrate with popular customer relationship management (CRM) platforms to create more targeted marketing campaigns with customer data and purchase history. Many systems also include built-in tools or website features to help promote new arrivals, sales, or events.
Too much stock, especially of wines that don’t sell, can tie up cash and eat into your margins. Managing your inventory based on what sells keeps your cash flow healthy and your shelves stocked with wines actually customers want.
Before placing your next order, ask:
Use POS reports to flag anything with low weekly or monthly turnover. Keep lower stock of those wines and reallocate that budget to better sellers, especially in categories like sparkling, sustainable, or chilled whites, which tend to move faster and offer stronger margins.
Your staff doesn’t need to be sommeliers, but they should feel confident talking about what’s on your shelves. A knowledgeable team can influence buying decisions, increase the average order value, and help move higher-margin wines without alienating customers.
That confidence comes from regular, focused training. It doesn’t have to take long — just a few practical updates each week can go a long way:
The right POS system makes this even easier. Look for one that’s intuitive to train on and gives your team access to product info, sales data, and performance insights — so training has a direct impact on what sells.
Don’t set your prices or run promotions and then forget about them.
Regularly digging into your sales and profit data gives you the real picture of what’s working and what’s holding you back. If a specific wine or marketing campaign isn’t delivering, you can’t afford to wait months to find out.
Try these tips to stay proactive:
Making a habit of regularly checking performance data on your POS helps you cut losses on slow movers before they start significantly draining your cash flow, and it also helps you know exactly how to shift your resources to actually grow profits.
Related Read: What's the Average Liquor Store Revenue? + 7 Sales-Boosting Strategies
Start with small, impactful changes to improve your wine shop’s earnings — focus on higher-margin wines, cut slow sellers, thoroughly train your staff, and review sales data often.
Remember: Success requires ongoing attention. Trends change, customers evolve, and what worked before might need adjusting later on. A POS system with real-time sales and inventory info helps you stay on top of it all and adjust fast.
For more on picking the right tools for your wine sales, check out our free Guide to Finding the Best Wine Point of Sale so you know what to look for, how to compare vendors, and tips to find the best fit for your shop.
