Buying Craft Spirits Online

Curiada is a new online store that sells a select choice of craft spirits to bring craft distillers to a whole new audience.

Have you ever read about a new craft spirit that you thought you’d like to try, only to go online and find it’s only available in two states on the other side of the country? It’s a common experience as often the small craft distillers are too busy distilling, and distributing alcohol of any kind is a time-consuming and bureaucratic business. Every state has its own laws and sometimes it’s easier to stick with the devil you know.

Buying Craft Spirits Online

It’s a great shame – and a lost opportunity – for both distillers and drinkers alike, which is why three friends who are all craft spirit fans decided to try to do something about it and formed Curiada. Curiada is an online liquor store, but unlike the big guys such as Master of Malt and Drizly, they only stock a personally-selected range of craft spirits. The aim is to make them available beyond their home states, and at the time of writing Curiada can ship to 28 states across the USA, with more in the pipeline.

I thought it was such a good idea that I wanted to find out more, so I spoke with Curiada’s Chief Marketing Officer and Co-Founder, Joey Robinson. CEO Adam Caplan and Chief Brand and Creative Officer Joanna Franchini are the two other Co-Founders.

Joey Robinson of Curiada — Joey Robinson

So first, where did the name Curiada come from?

We are all really curious people, and we wanted to build a brand that had curiosity, exploration, and discovery at its heart. We also think the idea of curation is essential, since the world doesn’t need another website with thousands of brands being offered. We chose a name to try to evoke those feelings. Adam has always been fascinated by the Portuguese language, so when we discovered that “curiada” in Portuguese means curated, it felt like a sign.

Tell me about the people behind Curiada?

We all have varying degrees of spirits-industry experience. Adam and Joanna both spent the better part of a decade working at Kantar Consulting, where they helped dozens of beer, wine and spirits companies solve thorny brand and marketing problems. I led all digital strategy during a tremendous period of growth for the now $1.2B privately-held licensing company Margaritaville, which has both a spirit and beer brand, among other things.

Joanna Franchini of Curiada — Joanna Franchini

How did you all meet?

Adam and Joanna had worked together at Kantar Consulting and I’m a long-time friend of one of their colleagues. As happens in the world of startups, a few passionate conversations, a fortunate introduction from a friend, and a lot of luck brought us together. It’s been half a year that we’ve been working together seamlessly now to bring this idea to reality.

Adam Caplan of Curiada — Adam Caplan (center)

Who had the original idea?

The idea was brewing in Adam’s brain for a while. Adam, and each of us, believe in a world where small suppliers, producers, and entrepreneurs can compete on a more level playing field with the major spirits conglomerates.

We also love the idea of building a world in which discerning people across the country can access excellent spirits, not just those lucky enough to live near the right retailer. Adam saw the need to help the suppliers and the customers find each other. He spent months speaking with customers and different parties along the supply chain. Shortly before launch, Joanna and I joined him.

How did you decide who to approach for your launch collections?

We knew we had to have a special partner for our launch collection. Adam met Gil, of All Points West, a micro-distillery out of Newark, NJ, some months back. Gil’s whiskey was delicious, had a unique production story, and had won Gold and Whiskey of the Year at the 2019 USA Spirits Ratings. But it was only available at a few places in the Newark/New York City area. We thought it would be exciting to help Gil get his bottles out to many more people who would appreciate it, and so we threw our lots in together.

As for the others, we looked for highly-respected, top-quality spirits that for whatever reason don’t get much attention. We matched them to our collection themes, which are inspired by summer escapism and relaxation. This led us to a few tasty, lighter spirits such as Crop Organic Cucumber Vodka and St. George Green Chili Vodka.

A few of the selections could be considered our staff picks, bottles we love that are not as accessible or well-known as we’d like. And some are bottles we want to share with the world such as Mezcal Vago Cuixe.

It’s been exciting to see the enthusiasm for these unique spirits, none of which are household names. In fact, it’s the All Points West bottles that have been our biggest seller so far — which is super-inspiring for us because it shows that people have a strong desire to find out about and explore new and interesting bottles even if they aren’t advertised all over the subway.

And what’s your criteria on what you sell?

We use expert opinions, awards and accolades, industry ratings, unbiased reviews, some measure of “value for money,” our own experiences and preferences, and the voices of our community and customers. As we grow, we hope to make these criteria more explicit, while also recognizing that taste is not universal, and we hope to offer bottles that appeal to everyone, even if not every bottle will appeal to every person.

What’s the benefit to buyers of buying through Curiada?

First, we have a limited selection of bottles on offer, and that’s by design. When someone buys from Curiada, they know they are getting a special spirit that has already passed the quality test.

Also, we are the place to find, discover, and explore more. There’s a concept in the wine and spirits industry of hand-selling. It’s how you introduce someone to an unfamiliar bottle and use things they already know – certain styles, flavors, places – to help them understand what this new bottle might be like and whether it might be something for them. It’s necessary in a world where there’s a dizzying array of options and people gravitate toward what’s familiar. So we want to use our platform to perfect “digital hand-selling” spirits.

We try to really uncover and reveal what makes each bottle unique, and how it will appeal to people against specific dimensions, despite the fact that they might not have heard of it. We want to re-create that experience of talking to a knowledgeable bartender, or tasting a new brand in an upscale liquor store in the digital realm.

Finally, and probably most importantly, for many people who live in some parts of the country, we are one of the few – if not the only — way to buy some of these impossible-to-find bottles.

And the benefit to sellers?

We are helping craft distillers and producers build their brands in homes and online, and giving them a place to more directly connect with their audience on a platform that’s designed for brands like them. We give them a dedicated space and place to do so, where they aren’t competing with thousands of other brands, many of which have massive marketing budgets.

For many sellers, Curiada enables them to expand their reach into new geographies at a much lower cost than is typical of the industry. For example, the excellent Ron Izalco 10-year rum is well-distributed overseas, and now it will be listed on Curiada.com and available in 28 states.

Last, we’ve designed our business in such a way so that we only succeed at Curiada when our suppliers succeed, which means it’s a very collaborative, mutually-beneficial partnership.

What are your plans for the future?

Today we’re doing everything we can to delight our customers, and to get the word out about Curiada through our first supporters. We have a number of potential plans on the horizon as the brand grows and evolves, but our focus is on satisfying our customers, and designing an experience that they’re delighted to engage with, come back to, and tell their friends and fellow spirit-lovers about.