Bestway is to launch two new franchise fascia brands aimed at expanding its geographic coverage, adding more categories and capitalising on post-covid opportunities for stores and pubs alike.

Trademarks registered by Bestway in September and subsequently uncovered by RN revealed new brands BB’s Booze & Bites and Tippl Drinks Inc, both covering delivery services, grocery goods, food to go and off-trade categories.

BB’s will utilise the ‘heritage’ of the Bargain Booze brand. It will be a full convenience brand with an off-trade focus on more premium beer, wine and spirits, such as refill in store lager and craft beer growlers. A trial site in Buxton, Derbyshire named ‘BB’s good times to go’ is set to launch in early November offering a ‘latest/greatest’ value-led alcohol range, fresh pizza, loaded nachos, thick shakes, slush, coffee, soft drinks, snacks, frozen goods and vaping lines.

Tippl – a variant of the Wine Rack brand will aim to expand the categories available Wine Rack franchisees, add on-trade elements to stores and add off-trade categories to pubs. A trial site in Garforth in Leeds named ‘Tippl – drink eat explore’ is set to open in mid-November featuring a ‘latest/greatest’ premium alcohol range, fresh sourdough pizza, loaded nachos, barista coffee & pastries, premium frozen, premium chilled and on-trade alcohol.

Bestway managing director Dawood Pervez told RN both fascias were now in trial stages at sites in Bestway’s centrally owned store estate. “We’ve shown it to our franchise forum and the brands, the deals and the theory have been really well received, now we’re putting it into practice.”

Describing BB’S Pervez said: “Bargain Booze is the largest off-license change and the largest independent convenience franchise in the UK. It has fantastic cut-through in areas that require a value proposition on core off-license lines, but BB’s is a model that can help the brand cut-through in other more premium areas. BB’s was developed to keep the heritage of the Bargain Booze brand while also allowing for the brand to encompass a wider range of convenience categories. We think that going forward, there will be demand for more variation in goods in both the on and off-trade.”

Asked about Tippl, the Bestway boss responded: “Tippl is a similar concept but for Wine Rack, which is inverted in that it does well in affluent areas and the new brand can widen this. The Wine Rack name also suggests an even more limited ranging and Tippl allows us to offer a broader range of beers, wines and spirits as well as food options.” 

He said through BB’s and Tippl diversifying into non-alcohol categories, off-licenses could turn traditionally quieter mornings into ‘more quality trading hours.’

While both brands are designed primarily as standalone retail brands, Pervez said they also present opportunities to on-trade locations. Discussing Tippl, he commented: “This format is a good way forward for on-trade outlets as well. In the last recession we saw a wave of pubs turned into convenience stores and under lockdown many pubs adding shops, and I can imagine that many will be looking to build an offering for both on and offsite consumption.”

As well as allowing pubs and bars to offer off-trade elements such as groceries and alcohol for at home consumption, the new formats will also allow shops to offer on-trade and foodservice elements such as alcohol for consumption on-premises and coffee, bakery and takeaway lunch rantings.

Describing the addition of these elements, Pervez told RN: “In the convenience sector, the market hasn’t moved forward very fast and we’ve seen entire sectors spring up to fill the same need states and convenience stores – players like Costa, Starbuck and even Greggs. The current trends and changes could be the re-set the convenience sector requires to allow stores to meet these customer needs.”

While Bestway has previously stated its intention to consolidate the number of facias on offer, the wholesaler confirmed that this was a longer term strategy that would begin with its centrally owned estates, such as Central Stores.

The uncovering of Bestway’s facia plans comes less than a week after Booker confirmed the trial launch of a new symbol group based on Tesco’s Jack’s discounter supermarket brand.