to work due to the uncertainty and fear this virus brings along with it. So we’ve limited our hours to 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and everyone has been busting their tails to provide the best customer service during this extremely stressful time. Times like this bring out the worst in some, yet the best in others. Wells is truly like family, from our employees to our customers. The support we’ve had has been absolutely amazing! I feel blessed that we can still remain open despite others having to close and be out of work. We’ve even hired some friends/ customers to help work as they have been laid off due to this pandemic. We have been cleaning like crazy, sanitizing everything... I’m exhausted every day along with my amazing team. We’re doing our best to not burn out which is another reason why we cut back our hours. Business has been great! I just hope we can keep it up... It seems every day gets more hectic and people are more stressed and on edge. Luckily some spirits help! We have always offered delivery, but we are doing way more than ever before and have had a ton of new customers.
ROXANN ROGERS is third-generation owner of Baltimore-based Wells Liquors. Since the day Maryland closed schools, business has been insane and overwhelming on multiple levels. We have been extremely busy and unable to keep up with the demand. We’ve had a surge in boxed-wine sales, large- format liquor (1.75-liter size), and honestly people are less specific on what actual wine they want, they just want a lot of it. Hard seltzers (like White Claw) are also huge sellers right now, even more so prior to this pandemic. Every time Maryland Governor Larry Hogan holds a press conference, we see a huge surge in business. We minimized the number of customers in our store to two at a time, and then shut it down completely to just call- ahead curbside orders only and city delivery. We have always offered delivery, but we are doing way more than ever before and have had a ton of new customers. The call-ahead curbside service has been great as well. We have six phone lines, and they have been ringing off the hook with orders and credit cards being placed over the phone. The customer then calls when he’s in the parking lot with ID, and we bring it out and load up their trunk. A huge factor in doing this was to keep my employees and our customers safe. I’ve had a fair amount of employees unwilling or unable
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