CHARLOTTE — North Carolina lawmakers passed significant changes for Alcohol Beverage Control. Mecklenburg County ABC Chief Executive Officer Keva Walton says it is all about modernizing the ABC, which is an effort that kicked off during the pandemic.
“One of the things we wanted to do was make sure that there was access. In the height of the pandemic, we were letting two people, three people inside, and so we’ve launched ABC To Go, which is an online portal. And you still have to be the person who orders and you’ve got to come and verify that you are of age. But we’ve seen that start to pick up,” Walton said.
The ABC omnibus passed by lawmakers was wide-ranging. Some of the changes include legalizing cocktails to go. It also allows ABC stores to sell gift cards and be open on New Year’s Day, July 4, and Labor Day.
But Walton says, for now, Mecklenburg County’s ABC stores will remain closed on those holidays.
“One of our big values is around family,” he said. “We have chosen not to open on the holidays to allow our staff to have that time with family. The other reality is operating 31 stores. That’s a big budget, hit to staff, and open 31 days on holiday. So, at the moment, we will remain closed on holidays.”
In the 2023 fiscal year, the top-selling product in Mecklenburg County was a fifth of Titos, bringing in more than $11.7 million. That was followed by Patron Silver at $7.5 million and a handle of Titos at $5.9 million.
Vodka is the most popular seller but tequila is the fastest growing.
“Tequila, particularly during the pandemic, seemed to shoot up, and it seems to be the choice of a broad cross-section of people,” Walton said. “So, if you go into our stores, you’ll still see a lot of shelf space committed to vodka, but you’re starting to see even more committed to tequila.”
What people may not realize about ABC is the commission doesn’t make a profit.
Since starting in 1947, the Mecklenburg County ABC Board has operated only on the money derived from the county’s spirit sales. Any profits go back into the community, including to the city, towns, nonprofits focused on substance abuse and the library.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Library CEO Marcellus Turner says it is a fantastic partnership.
“I’m probably one of the luckiest CEOs of a library in the country, because who walks in and has a dedicated funding coming from ABC liquor stores?” Turner said. “Most library directors would really want something like that. But the benefit is really for our community.”
In 2023, ABC contributed more than $22 million to the city, county, and library. Turner says the library’s funding is put to good use.
“We’re really trying to support the growth of our community. We are able to do so many different programs as a result of the funding that comes in,” he said. “We’re able to do outreach for our community. Programming and outreach is one of our biggest areas of work that we do and being able to go into the community to bring libraries to areas where there are not physical standing locations is really good for us. We’re able to do programming. We’re able to do professional development for our staff, and we’ve even worked on a few facilities with some of this funding.”
Walton says the community will remain ABC’s focus.
“I know there are a lot of critics about the system, and I can appreciate the perspective, but I think it was very intuitive and forward-thinking in 1947 for someone to say, ‘You know what, we want the people of our community to benefit,’” he said.
In FY23, Meck ABC Board provided $3.8 million to Anuvia, a nonprofit organization dedicated to substance use and treatment services.
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