Supervalue limits Spirits purchases

I was in Supervalue today and in the Spirits section they had the following announcement on all the shelves;

"Due to Customs/Revenue advice, customers purchases are limited to a maximum of four units"

Does anybody know whats behind this? The items were normal prices so I can't see what revenue/excise implications there might be.

Or is it just a scam to encourage people to buy four bottles?

godtabh

Supply issues due to weather?

godtabh wrote: »

Supply issues due to weather?

No, the shelves were well stocked and anyway not many people would buy
5 bottles of spirits at one go so such a restriction wouldnt save much.

And besides, it would be dishonest, though not unheard of, to blame revenue for the shops own policies.

odyssey06

Just theorizing here... Revenue would have no issue if it was being bought for private consumption at home.
Are their spirits \ vouchers deals that good that pubs\clubs are stocking up in bulk in Supervalu and selling measure by measure?
I didn't think so... Doesn't add up to me.

Gonna make it a bit awkward if you are planning cocktails at a party...
IF they bring in similar restrictions on wine or beer would make planning a private party or function challenging.

doolox

....to but 4 each at different times. Should be enough for any party.

Give two fingers to the nanny state government and the killjoys out ruin our fun.

eurokev

To stop pubs and wholesalers buying them up.
I have known and have seen individuals go in to supermarkets, with wads of cash, ask for the manager and buy up all their stock of a particular deal. Say your really good deal like €20 ltr Smirnoff. Could be ten pallets

Wholesalers can then shift this over a few weeks making a fiver profit per bottle (which would be a lot more than usual for them) when offers in supermarkets finish and the wholesalers now all of a sudden have the cheapest price around

rubadub

Makes no sense to me

eurokev wrote: »

To stop pubs and wholesalers buying them up

why blatantly lie and make fools of your customers (and yourselves) by talking nonsense about revenue & customs.

Any place with offers on anything can have restrictions in place to stop retailers, pubs or dipsos, snapping them all up. I remember aldi or lidl having limits on chickens to presumably stop butchers or restaurants buying them up.

odyssey06 wrote: »

Just theorizing here... Revenue would have no issue if it was being bought for private consumption at home.
Are their spirits \ vouchers deals that good that pubs\clubs are stocking up in bulk in Supervalu and selling measure by measure?
I didn't think so... Doesn't add up to me.

Yes, there can anecdotally be often far cheaper booze on offer in supermarkets than what pubs are charged. In my local we have sometimes left with bottles of vodka "on loan" and replaced days later and the manager asks what we paid and is often disgusted as he pays more. You will see many old threads and sites online with publicans claiming supermarkets MUST be selling below cost -simply because they are charged more for a longneck of heineken via formal & approved distribution routes. Some of these morons probably do believe this is true! I sincerely hope most cop on that they are being totally fleeced and taken for utter fools, while the public are being offered a temporary offer in which neither the brewery or supermarket are at a loss.

L1011

odyssey06 wrote: »

Just theorizing here... Revenue would have no issue if it was being bought for private consumption at home.
Are their spirits \ vouchers deals that good that pubs\clubs are stocking up in bulk in Supervalu and selling measure by measure?

Wouldn't impact Revenue. Same duty, same VAT take on the pub sales (input VAT will be reclaimed either way)

I think I've bought 5 bottles in one go before, once, when stocking up for my 30th.

the beer revolu

Sounds like supervalu are telling porkies.

I've never heard of revenue restrictions on personal purchases and, as has been already said, there is no legal issue with wholesalers or retailers buying from a supermarket.

Seems like supervalu want to impose limits but want to blame revenue for said limits.