Fancy a tipple but want to #shoplocal? Melbourne startup MR. SIPPY has you covered

Booze delivery services have made a killing over the past year, as millions of Aussies upped their alcohol intake whilst locked away at home. It was great news for the major players in the sector but left many little guys struggling to compete.

Now a Melbourne startup, MR. SIPPY, plans to end the monopoly by offering local independent bottle shops delivery services.

Giving the little guys a chance

The brain behind this venture is Todd Scott. The 38-year-old Melburnian said the idea of an alcohol delivery service that supported local businesses came about during Melbourne’s lockdown.

Scott was ideally placed to put together the offering with a background in hospitality, sales and tech.

“I was using different alcohol delivery services during the lockdown and noticed that none of our local bottle shops were on the platforms. I, like many others, have really been trying to shop local more over recent years, but by using the existing services, I was just supporting conglomerate businesses.

“After some research, I found that there are 4,500 independent bottle shops across the country. But the existing alcohol delivery companies weren’t supporting them. I decided to do something about it, and MR. SIPPY was born.”

Delivering Thursday to Sunday from 5-11 pm, MR. SIPPY’S on-demand service gets the beers, wines and spirits delivered quickly, usually within the hour. Scott promises this will only get faster as more drivers come on board.

From success to expansion

Currently, MR. SIPPY services 52 suburbs across Melbourne, but Scott already has plans to expand nationally to help independent bottle shops compete with the majors.

“After a lot of hard work and trial and error, we have now launched – to not only provide these retailers with a new revenue stream and to help them compete with the multi-national players by being a part of MR. SIPPY, but to enable Melburnians to support local while getting their booze delivered.”

Bottle shops aren’t charged anything to sign up or be part of MR. SIPPY, and customers must simply make a minimum purchase.

Melburnians wanting to support their local bottle shop can simply download the MR. SIPPY app, put their postcode in, browse the range and spend a minimum of $30.

The order will go through to the closest independent bottle shop available, and a MR. SIPPY driver will bring the booze to the door.

Now, who’s for a drink?

MR. SIPPY can be downloaded on the App Store and Google Play.

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