Stew Leonard’s Wines & Spirits President Blake Leonard Talks Beverage Industry, Company Succession

Summary

Podcast Summary: Bloomberg Talks

Episode: Stew Leonard’s Wines & Spirits President Blake Leonard Talks Beverage Industry, Company Succession
Date: May 15, 2026
Host(s): Bloomberg Host & Tim (Co-host)
Guest: Blake Leonard, President of Stew Leonard’s Wines & Spirits

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Overview:

This episode features an interview with Blake Leonard, President of Stew Leonard’s Wines & Spirits and a certified sommelier. The conversation explores the current challenges in the beverage industry, consumer trends, supply chain impacts, and the unique dynamics of running and transitioning a multi-generational family business. Blake also shares insights on how Stew Leonard’s adapts to economic shifts while maintaining its values.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Setting the Stage: Economic and Industry Pressures

• Context: The hosts reference ongoing inflation, energy prices, and lingering effects from tariffs as factors impacting consumer costs leading into summer 2026.
• Notable Segment:
  • The impact of global events (U.S.-Iran war, higher energy/gas prices) and continued inflation on household and grocery costs.
    • “Inflation prints just this week reminding us that inflation is outpacing wage growth. Not so good.” — Tim (Co-host) [00:52]
• Transition: The discussion pivots to how these macroeconomic forces are affecting the wine and spirits retail industry.

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2. Supply Chain & Consumer Cost Sensitivity

• Rising Transportation Costs:
  • Blake explains cost increases they’re seeing at the supplier level, noting:
    • “I was just visiting one of our wine suppliers, and he was saying that it cost him over $2,000 more just to get a container of wine here into the US right now.” — Blake Leonard [02:32]
• Holding the Line on Prices:
  • Stew Leonard’s strategy: splitting shipping costs with suppliers to keep shelf prices “family friendly.”
  • “We can work with our suppliers and hold those costs. In a lot of instances, we’ll split that transportation cost… to keep prices here on our store floor family friendly.” — Blake Leonard [03:21]
• Consumer Sentiment:
  • The store is seeing price sensitivity from customers feeling pain at the gas pump and grocery checkout.
• Industry Trends:
  • Noted decrease in alcohol consumption among younger demographics, with “dry January” extending into longer sobriety themes [02:51].

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3. Pricing and Product Strategy

• Price Sensitivity of Wine Sales:
  • Even a small price increase can dramatically reduce volume sold.
  • “If I were to go and sell it over $15, what happens to sales is they go down. So you really have to be price sensitive.” — Blake Leonard [03:45]
• “Wine Detective” Approach:
  • Blake emphasizes traveling to Europe to discover high-quality, value-driven wines from family producers.
  • “We often say they taste like they’re twice the price… Really trying to bring not only the price point, but also the story back for our customers.” — Blake Leonard [04:32]
• Consumer Education:
  • The store educates shoppers on great value wines, bringing transparency and storytelling into retail.

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4. Succession, Values & Evolution of the Family Business

• Multi-generational Transition:
  • Blake and her cousin are part of the next generation set to lead Stew Leonard’s business operations.
  • Family focus remains a central tenet.
• Core Values Endure Amid Change:
  • A recent learning from family business peers (e.g., Jim Perdue, Panda Express):
    • “One of the biggest takeaways… is sticking to their core values. No matter what happens, sticking to their core values.” — Blake Leonard [06:22]
  • The business has evolved (e.g., selling organic milk now) while maintaining foundational principles:
    • “I grew up drinking milk from Stew’s and my kids today, they’re also drinking milk from Stew’s, but it’s organic… We’ve evolved, and so it’s kind of just a slow evolution over time.” — Blake Leonard [06:22]
• Thoughts on Going Public:
  • Despite offers, the family prefers to keep the business private to retain autonomy.
  • “What we want… is we really want to keep this a family business… and want to continue. The decisions we get to make every day are really… ones that we don’t have to rely on anyone else for.” — Blake Leonard [07:31]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Celebratory Opener (Spritz Season):
  • “Since it’s Friday, I wanted to start off just cheersing you with an aperol spritz right here.” — Blake Leonard [01:49]
• On International Liquor Laws:
  • “The interstate liquor laws, it’s a big issue. Truly.” — Tim (Co-host) [02:09]
• Quality Without High Price:
  • “You don’t have to spend a lot of money to get a great bottle of wine.” — Bloomberg Host [05:07]
• Family Growth and Succession:
  • “In my generation, it went from four in my dad’s generation now to over 13 of us. And now in the fourth generation there’s over 22 great grandkids.” — Blake Leonard [07:31]

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Important Timestamps

• Consumer/Industry Environment: [01:15–02:32]
• Supply Chains & Costs: [02:32–03:07]
• Holding Prices, Wine Selection: [03:07–05:26]
• Succession Planning & Values: [05:56–07:31]
• Considerations about Going Public: [07:31–08:09]

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Tone and Language

The conversation is approachable and frank, mixing practical business analysis with personal anecdotes and friendly rapport. Blake’s perspective blends expertise (as a sommelier and exec) with authentic family business stewardship.

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Summary

Blake Leonard’s discussion offers a compelling look into how Stew Leonard’s Wines & Spirits navigates economic headwinds, prioritizes value for customers, and charts a path for generational succession—all while keeping the business rooted in its founding values. The episode effectively explores both industry trends (like shifting drinking habits and supply chain woes) and the unique strengths and challenges of a family-run retail organization.

Transcript

[Indiana University Announcer]

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[Bloomberg Host]

Bloomberg Audio Studios Podcasts Radio news. About a year ago, we were kind of coming off Trump's President Trump's Liberation Day. Higher or uncertain terror environment. It was. We're kind of up in the air about a lot of things. And at the time we were forecasting put out a story at Bloomberg just ahead of Memorial Day that the price of a cookout was going up.

[Tim (Co-host)]

Beef prices were an issue then, too.

[Bloomberg Host]

Yes. Right. And that was. Well, the story got into a lot of the issues were domestic ones that were impacting the prices of things. And then I think about this year, Tim, what's going on?

[Tim (Co-host)]

Okay. U.S. war in Iran, higher energy prices, higher gas prices. Inflation prints just this week reminding us that inflation is outpacing wage growth. Not so good.

[Bloomberg Host]

Not so great. So what does it mean for our summer picnics as we get ready? Please, please, to kick off summer? It's just around the corner.

[Tim (Co-host)]

It felt like 45 this morning. That was the feel like temperature, 51 degrees in New York.

[Bloomberg Host]

I still had layers. I hear it's gonna be like 80 degrees on Sunday.

[Tim (Co-host)]

Yep.

[Bloomberg Host]

For more, let's head to Stu Leonard's Wines and Spirit store. It is in Norwalk, Connecticut. That's where we find Blake Leonard. She's the president of Stu Leonard's Wines and Spirits. She's also part of the next generation that will take over running the store founded by her grand take the reins as president along with a cousin from her dad, Stu Leonard Jr. Keeping it in the family. I love that you are a certified sommelier from the Culinary Institute in Napa. You've worked for many other families too, in the wine business, including the well known Gallows. Blake, welcome, welcome. How are you?

[Blake Leonard]

Hey. Thank you so much for having me today. And you know, since it's Friday, I wanted to start off just cheersing you with an aperol spritz right here.

[Bloomberg Host]

Oh, my God.

[Tim (Co-host)]

I feel like she's seen Stu Leonard do this a few times on our show. Yeah, yeah. Learn from the best.

[Bloomberg Host]

I love you. I love you. But I do resent that there wasn't one sent to us. That's all I'm going to say.

[Blake Leonard]

I know.

[Bloomberg Host]

I'm just going to say I think

[Tim (Co-host)]

the interstate liquor laws, it's a big issue. Truly.

[Bloomberg Host]

I'm not. True.

[Blake Leonard]

That is true.

[Tim (Co-host)]

I don't know. Okay, well, maybe we can.

[Blake Leonard]

But, you know, we're right here in spritz season now, so I'm excited.

[Bloomberg Host]

Hey, talk to us, though, about the environment before we get into the summer season, what people are interested in terms of wines and spirits. But talk to us about the consumer, what you guys are seeing.

[Blake Leonard]

Yeah, well, you know, I was the other day just visiting one of our wine suppliers, and he was saying that it cost him over $2,000 more just to get a container of wine here into the US Right now. And that's, you know, just one part of the whole transportation piece, you know, for getting wine into our wine stores. Wow.

[Tim (Co-host)]

So you couple that with. With actually selling the wine in. In a time when we're hearing more and more about young people not drinking as much. This idea of, like, you know, dry January, actually lasting year, what does that mean for the overall business?

[Blake Leonard]

Well, you know, you also see customers here on the store, and I was just talking to a lady of their day who was just talking about how much more it costs her to fill up her huge, you know, van that she. She drives with all her kids in the back. So, you know, we, you know, everyone here on the store floor is definitely feeling it. I think one good thing, and, you know, hearing all the stock prices before, but about being a family business is that we can, you know, work with our suppliers and hold those costs. In a lot of instances, we'll split that transportation cost with our suppliers so we can keep prices here on our store floor family friendly.

[Bloomberg Host]

And you guys have not yet seen price increases, my understanding, is due to fuel, correct?

[Blake Leonard]

Yes, we have. Not here in the wine business, as you started off with the tariffs, that was big last year, and for this year, really, no one wants to raise the price of wine right now. And I always look, this is a great new rose that just came in. It's a new, fresh vintage. But, you know, we're retailing this under $15, and if I were to go and sell it over $15, what happens to sales is they go down. So you really have to be price sensitive with those barriers there. And we look at it as, hopefully a temporary thing, and, you know, trying to look at the longer picture is

[Tim (Co-host)]

the idea on it with a product like that. And if, you know, if I'm thinking about margins correctly, that you take a little bit of a hit there, but you get people in the store to buy that, and then they. Other things that don't have as big that have bigger margins.

[Blake Leonard]

Yes, well, and one of the things That I love doing is I'm like a little, you know, wine detective out there. But I love going. Every year we go to a wine show either in Paris or in, in Italy, and we get to meet firsthand with a lot of these multi generational families who are making unbelievable wine. And we get to bring them back and sell them in our stores. And really they're wines that over deliver for the price and we often say they taste like they're twice the price. So really trying to bring not only the price point, but also the story back for our customers because we think that now more than ever that's what customers want to hear about.

[Bloomberg Host]

I'm always amazed, like when you're over in Europe or Paris and you just order, I don't know, just a little wine, nothing big, and it's just great. Like I feel like over the years and you know, this industry, like it just feels like, you know, we keep getting told you don't have to spend a lot of money to get a great bottle of wine.

[Blake Leonard]

Yeah, no, you don't. And you know, right here, this is, this, this is a Corsican rose that I have. And this is also one of our best sellers. It's a Provence rose under $15. A female winemaker. She won the top 100 winemaker. You know, one of the top 100 winemakers in the world. She was awarded a couple years ago. So there's great value out there. You do have to spend time looking for it. But that's what we really strive to do for our customers here on the store floor, as well as educate them.

[Tim (Co-host)]

So let's talk a little bit about the next generation of Stu Leonard's and sort of the timeline for you and your cousin taking over. And also I'm curious about, with a background in wine and spirits, what you can then do in your approach to the grocery business. A historically low margin business, a very challenging business that, you know, you have to work with the ups and downs of the economy and the macroeconomic environment. What is your plan for Stu Leonards when you take it over?

[Blake Leonard]

You know, yesterday all of my cousins and my dad, you know, it was work, but we got to spend the day all together in the city listening to other family businesses talk. And it was a really awesome day. But one of the biggest takeaways I had listening to Jim Perdue speak and we got to meet him afterwards and hearing Enterprise as well and Panda Express, they all stick to their core values, so no matter what happens is sticking to their core values. When I look back at our business today. You know, I grew up drinking milk from stews and my kids today, they're also drinking milk from stews, but it's organic. And so, you know, if we had 20 years ago tried selling organic milk, it would have been way too expensive to really for our customers at that time. But we've evolved and so it's kind of just a slow evolution over time. And that's, you know, one of the things that, that always sticks out to me is that my kids are drinking organic whole milk now.

[Bloomberg Host]

Blake, I just want to mention we have a headline crossing from Reuters. Space X picks the Nasdaq as its listing venue for its massive upcoming IPO on that. Did you, do you guys ever think about going public?

[Blake Leonard]

We've definitely had offers and we have, you know, offers either go into partnerships or to be purchased. And it's always something we think about because in my generation, it went from four in my dad's generation now to over 13 of us. And now in the fourth generation there's over 22 great grandkids. So it's definitely something we always think about. But really what we want, and you know, my cousins and I all just met recently to talk about this is we really want to keep this a family business and want to continue. You know, the decisions we get to make every day are really, you know, ones that we don't have to rely on anyone else for that.

[Bloomberg Host]

So listen, so fun to catch up with you stay in touch.

[Blake Leonard]

Thank you very much.

[Bloomberg Host]

Especially as we kick off the summer season. Blake Leonard, she's the president of Stu Leonard's Wines and Spirits, joining us out there in Connecticut.

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