Now that the New Year is days away, I’m sharing a friendly reminder to not add wines and alcohols to your gift baskets if you do not have a license to include it.

A hefty fine imposed by law enforcement for bypassing rules or seeing your picture on the front page of the newspaper as the “first lawbreaker of 2012″ is not the way to treat your time, money, or reputation.

If you have a liquor license, you probably jumped through many hoops to get it, so pat yourself on the back.

If you don’t have a license, there are plenty of attractive and delicious sparkling ciders available through wholesalers, and if you didn’t order these beverages ahead of time, check local wholesalers as early as possible for the widest availability.

When you tell customers that you cannot offer spirited beverages due to local restrictions, they will respect and understand your position. Those who do not understand are not your true customers.

Small business attorney Robin Gronsky and I talked extensively about these and other laws on the CD, Legal Tips to Keep Your Company Out of Court. If you don’t have a copy, I urge you to add it to your library as a reminder of how to stay on the right side of the law.

Shirley George Frazier

Shirley George Frazier is recognized as the world’s authority on the gift basket industry. She is head basketologist at Sweet Survival LLC (known on the web as GiftBasketBusiness.com), which assists creative people to turn their passion into rewarding businesses. Shirley is also author of How to Start a Home-Based Gift Basket Business, The Gift Basket Design Book, and Marketing Strategies for the Home-Based Business. If you're looking for a speaker who's easy to work with, one that attendees will thank you for bringing to the event, contact Shirley at 973-279-2799 or Shirley@ShirleySpeaks.com.

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1. Why Making a Wine Basket Without a License Equals Lots of Trouble

Can you see yourself on the front page of your local newspaper, hands cuffed behind your back as you’re escorted to jail because the wine basket you made, the one you hoped would be under the radar, was opened and drunk by minors who are now hospitalized?

All the good you’ve done for your family and your community is down the drain. All the positive information delivered to the newspaper about your gifts and baskets was ignored — until now — when a mishap occurs.

We want to make our customers happy, and we can do it, but not at the expense of our livelihood.

If a customer calls and insists on you including wine or alcohol in the gift basket, stating that the order is canceled if you cannot add it, there’s just one thing to do — cancel the order.

• A competitor may be trying to run you out of business
• A city inspector may be testing how you operate your business
• A neighbor who’s jealous of your success may be out to get you

Don’t fall for the “I must have wine in that basket or else” plea unless you have a wine/liquor license and can legally include it. Some designers have such a license; others do not. This is just one of the caveats that attorney Robin Gronsky and I discuss on the CD Legal Tips to Keep Your Company Out of Court.

The only reason to be on the front page is for something positive about your business. That time is coming. In the meantime, stick with the rules and regulations that keep your baskets on the right side of the law.

Shirley George Frazier

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There were lots of discussions about problems that cause legal headaches during yesterday’s Q&A portion of my Philadelphia Gift Show gift basket seminar.

One retailer told us about her dismay when adding a bottle of alcohol to a gift basket that was brought to her by the customer. While she didn’t buy it, she was still part of a lawsuit due to its consumption.

This is a subject discussed in the past at Ask The Gift Basket Expert and one that will always be part of the industry because of our desire to satisfy customers while attempting to keep our businesses out of the court system.

I’ve often been asked by new designers about the parameters of adding wines and alcohol to gift baskets. While it’s widely known that buying and adding it if you don’t have a liquor license is prohibited, I hear other questions such as, “Can the customer bring the wine to me?”

This ongoing dilemma and similar concerns are the reason why I spoke with small business attorney, Robin Gronsky, on the CD Legal Tips to Keep Your Company out of Court.

It’s wise to know your city’s and state’s laws about liquor, and only you can research this by calling the proper officials.

What wine and alcohol questions do you have about adding either to your gift baskets?

Shirley George Frazier

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At first I thought this article about retailers under the threat of six months’ jail time for adding liquor to gift baskets was based in the U.S.

Then I saw the story is about Bangkok, Thailand merchants. Still, it’s an interesting story because it’s about our industry.

The fine shown for this offense, “up to 10,000 baht,” is the equivalent of $288.60 U.S. dollars.

I’ve yet to see a story about alcohol basket arrests in North America, but that doesn’t mean one hasn’t been published somewhere. There’s simply too much to lose, and at the same time, everything to gain when non-alcoholic alternatives are added.

Last year I discussed alcohol at Ask The Gift Basket Expert, and there were lots of comments from many of you.

Now that the holidays have passed, you’ll certainly see wonderful beverages and syrups at the upcoming trade shows. Aside from that, your mission is to check your inventory levels now to determine what you’ll buy and which products are must haves, maybes, and considerations.

I plan to return to posting trade show reports, as shown in this section, but this time they’ll be part of a special site I’ll launch early next month.

Did you learn anything about your customers this holiday season, whether about alcohol preferences or overall design appeal, that will extend your success in 2009?

Shirley George Frazier

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We all know how popular wine is as part of a gift basket, and we also know that many of us cannot legally include wine with our designs.

I thought about this as I read an article in New York’s Observer Today. Last week, the online paper featured a story about a winery that’s just hired a “new staff member with background in gift basket production.”

She’s now in charge of creating the winery’s gift baskets, and of course, the firm expects their gift basket sales to increase, especially in the fourth quarter.

You may not be able to buy wines, and perhaps that’s not what your customers prefer. However, you can expand your line by designing with crates and other containers that are often selected for wine inclusion.

Look at the above picture. It’s a prototype I created a few years ago for Total Wine. It includes the wine, breadsticks, and peanuts, a super-simple combination.

It’s very easy to create a crated design, so why not replace the wine with a sparkling cider or another beverage in a wine-type bottle?

This is not only easy to make and shrink wrap, it’s also easy to ship and easy to transport to the receiver’s front door.

What items are a good pairing with non-alcoholic beverages?

Wine-based containers aren’t just for alcohol. What do you think about this alternative?

Shirley George Frazier

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