bier cellar
Bier Cellar is a privately held craft beverage bottle shop operating two retail locations in the greater Portland, Maine area, selling curated craft beer, wine, cider, mead, and merchandise, plus a subscription Bier of the Month Club and keg sales for events.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2012
- HeadquartersPortland, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What bier cellar does
Bier Cellar is a privately held craft beverage retail bottle shop headquartered in Portland, Maine, founded in 2012 by Greg Norton as the first craft beer-focused store in the Portland area. The company operates two brick-and-mortar locations — the original at 299 Forest Avenue in Portland and a second at 593 Main Street in Gorham opened in May 2018 — selling craft beer, wine, cider, and mead alongside branded merchandise, gift cards, kegs, and an annual Advent Calendar. Its technology stack is a standard small-retail configuration: Shopify powers e-commerce and point-of-sale, Constant Contact handles email marketing, and Sweet Tooth Rewards runs the loyalty program; all online orders must be picked up in store due to Maine alcohol shipping law, which constrains geographic reach to the greater Portland market.
The business model combines transactional retail with a recurring-revenue layer: the Bier of the Month Club subscription (Session tier at $29.99-$34.99/month and Imperial tier at $49.99-$54.99/month, billed monthly, quarterly, or semi-annually) and value-added services such as in-store tastings, Beer Cellar University educational classes, and brewery collaboration events. Customers are primarily individual craft beverage enthusiasts seeking curated, hard-to-find selections and expert guidance. The company has been recognized by Hop Culture Magazine (Top 10 Bottle Shops in the US, 2018) and Men's Journal (Best 50 Beer Stores in the Country, 2018). In December 2021, founder Greg Norton sold the business to two long-time employees, Justin Ostrowski and Don Favreau; no institutional funding is reported in the available data, and the firm operates with 1-10 employees.
bier cellar firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- bier cellar
- Legal name
- Bier Cellar
- Website
- https://biercellar.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2012
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Bier Cellar is a privately held craft beverage bottle shop operating two retail locations in the greater Portland, Maine area, selling curated craft beer, wine, cider, mead, and merchandise, plus a subscription Bier of the Month Club and keg sales for events.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
bier cellar industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Specialty Beverage Retail
- NAICS
- Beer, Wine, and Liquor Retailers (445320)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Craft Beer Retail & Bottle Shops (Off-Premise) (CRANAAAC)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Alcohol Subscription & Wine Clubs (Retail) (CRANABAF)
Keywords
Where bier cellar is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Portland
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
bier cellar business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Retail Product Sales: Direct sales of craft beer, wine, cider, and mead to consumers through physical retail locations and online ordering with pickup. Products are sold individually, in four-packs, six-packs, and as kegs.
- Beer of the Month Club Subscription: Monthly subscription service offering curated selections of hard-to-find beers and seasonal classics. Two tiers available: Session (6 smaller bottles plus one large format) and Imperial (adds more large format bottles). Subscriptions are prepaid monthly, quarterly, or semi-annually.
- Merchandise Sales: Sale of branded merchandise including glassware (Kolsch stange, balloon glasses, Teku glasses), fitted hats, and other promotional items.
- Keg Sales and Rental: Sale of beer kegs for events, with rental of dispensing equipment (picnic taps) for customer use. Kegs require prepayment and are final sale.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | Session Level - Entry tier with 6 smaller bottles plus one large format bottle |
| Subscription | Monthly | Imperial Level - Includes Session tier plus additional large format bottles |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Merchandise items |
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | Keg dispensing equipment rental |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels6 records
bier cellar product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Bier Cellar is a craft beverage retail business operating physical storefronts that sell craft beer, wine, cider, mead, and related merchandise. The business supports online ordering for in-store pickup and runs a Beer of the Month subscription club with tiered membership options. In-store events and tastings supplement the core retail operation, alongside seasonal offerings such as an Advent Calendar and keg sales/deposits.
Product overview
Bier Cellar is a craft beverage retailer operating as a brick-and-mortar bottle shop with an e-commerce platform built on Shopify. The core offerings center on an extensive selection of Maine craft beer, curated wines, and merchandise. The business model combines retail sales with value-added services including a subscription-based Bier of the Month Club, seasonal Advent Calendar packages, keg sales for events, and periodic in-store tasting events featuring brewery partnerships. The product portfolio includes the main retail categories (Beer, Wine, Merchandise) complemented by subscription services and event-based offerings. All online orders require in-store pickup per Maine state alcohol laws.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Bier of the Month Club: Monthly subscription service offering curated craft beer packages with tasting notes and information about each beer.
Products and services
- Craft Beer (Bier)
- Wine
- Cider
- Mead
- Merchandise
- Beer of the Month Club
- Keg Sales and Rentals
- Advent Calendar
- Events and Tastings
- Gift Cards
Companies that use bier cellar
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
bier cellar technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration3 records
bier cellar partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Mast Landing BrewingcoreCollaboration on 'Shorts Weather IPA' - a smoothie IPA brewed with peaches and apricots, lactose, celebrating Bier Cellar's 6th anniversary and opening of Gorham location. A one-time release of four-packs of 16oz cans.
- Liquid RiotcoreCollaboration on 'Tropical Storm' kettle sour with guava, passionfruit and mango puree, originally for 4th anniversary, returned for 5th anniversary due to popularity. Described as one of the most underrated breweries in Maine.
- Austin Street BrewerycoreCollaboration brewing partnership resulting in 'Bier 2 Cellar' - an IPA bottle-conditioned with Brettanomyces to celebrate Bier Cellar's second anniversary. The partnership expanded with subsequent anniversary collaborations.
- Shelton Brothers ImportersminorImported specialty beer distributor bringing in difficult-to-find Belgian and international beers including Cantillon, 3 Fonteinen, De La Senne, and other sought-after producers.
- National DistributorsminorWine distributor partner for tasting events, bringing in wine selections for store events.
- Crush DistributorsminorWine distributor partner for tasting events, specializing in summer wine lineup for store events.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights5 records
bier cellar competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Total Wine & More: Largest U.S. independent multi-store retailer of beer, wine, and spirits with a broad assortment across price points. Competes with Bier Cellar on craft beer and wine selection but with vastly greater scale, broader assortment, and deeper supplier negotiating leverage.
- BevMo!: Multi-store specialty beverage retailer offering beer, wine, and spirits with frequent tastings and educational events. Comparable retail experience to Bier Cellar at much larger scale, with a similar focus on craft curation and in-store expertise.
- Spec's Wine, Spirits & Beer: Regional multi-store beverage retailer based in Texas offering deep assortment of beer, wine, and spirits with knowledgeable staff. Comparable breadth and curated positioning, but at substantially greater scale and on a regional rather than local footprint.
Direct peers
- Craft Beer Cellar: Craft beer-focused bottle shop franchise with a similar curated, education-led retail concept. Direct competitive peer due to nearly identical naming, focus on craft and rare beers, in-store tastings, and curated subscription offerings.
- Healthy Spirits: Independent craft beer, wine, and spirits bottle shop in San Francisco with a strong curated selection, tasting events, and staff expertise. Closely mirrors Bier Cellar's positioning as a curated, education-led craft retailer at a similar single-market scale.
Emerging players
- Tavour: Direct-to-consumer craft beer subscription platform offering curated, hard-to-find beer shipments to members nationwide. Overlaps with Bier Cellar's Bier of the Month Club in curating rare craft beer for enthusiasts, but operates with a much larger geographic reach unconstrained by retail pickup.
- Drizly: Alcohol delivery marketplace partnering with local retailers to enable home delivery of beer, wine, and spirits. Adjacent peer — not a direct competitor on curated craft, but increasingly competes for the same at-home craft beer purchase occasions.
Regional players
- ABC Fine Wine & Spirits: Florida-based multi-store beverage retailer with curated craft beer, wine, and spirits. Comparable specialty-retail format and emphasis on staff expertise, but serves a different geography than Bier Cellar.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
bier cellar social profiles
Digital presencebier cellar financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
bier cellar leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
bier cellar subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
bier cellar funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
bier cellar M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about bier cellar
What does bier cellar do?
Bier Cellar is a craft beverage retail business operating physical storefronts that sell craft beer, wine, cider, mead, and related merchandise. The business supports online ordering for in-store pickup and runs a Beer of the Month subscription club with tiered membership options. In-store events and tastings supplement the core retail operation, alongside seasonal offerings such as an Advent Calendar and keg sales/deposits.
Is bier cellar a public or private company?
bier cellar is a private company. It is classified as management employee owned and is currently operating.
When was bier cellar founded?
bier cellar was founded in 2012. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is bier cellar based?
bier cellar is headquartered in Portland, United States, in the North America region.
How does bier cellar make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Retail Product Sales are the primary driver. The others are beer of the Month Club Subscription, merchandise Sales and keg Sales and Rental.
Who are bier cellar's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Total Wine & More, BevMo! and Spec's Wine, Spirits & Beer. Direct peers are Craft Beer Cellar and Healthy Spirits. Emerging players are Tavour and Drizly. ABC Fine Wine & Spirits is listed as a regional player.
Does bier cellar have an API?
No public API is recorded for bier cellar.
What industry is bier cellar in?
bier cellar's product category is Specialty Beverage Retail. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRANAAAC, Craft Beer Retail & Bottle Shops (Off-Premise), with a secondary code of CRANABAF, Alcohol Subscription & Wine Clubs (Retail). Its NAICS code is 445320.