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December 12, 2009

Wet Jacksonville poses threat to Cuney shops

By Nathan Straus

nstraus@jacksonvilleprogress.com



The possibility of alcohol elections in Jacksonville has beverage store owners in Cuney and Rusk on edge.

Cuney managers reported a profit dip when Rusk went wet over the summer and fear the drop could be a small taste of what might come.

Khien Thach, owner of T’s Discount Liquor on State Highway 175 in Cuney, said his business experienced a fall in sales around 20 percent when Rusk legalized alcohol sales. The potential drop from a wet Jacksonville is much greater, he said.

“About 90 percent of my business is from Jacksonville,” Thach said. “If they pass it, we won’t sell as much beer or wine.”

According to Thach, beer occupies roughly 80 percent of T’s Discount Liquor’s sales. He said it is a dramatic change from three years ago when most people purchased rum or vodka from his store.

“The economy went down and people started buying only beer and wine,” he said.

A main concern for Thach is being outsold by Wal-Mart. In a worst-case scenario, Thach said his store may go out of business.

Tee Chhey, manager of Cuney’s Fat Dog store, said sales have been steady despite Rusk’s election results.

“I think ours is staying the same because of customer service and selection,” Chhey said.

However, Chhey said Fat Dog will not avoid a significant drop in sales should Jacksonville legalize alcohol.

“It’s possible we’ll try to open another shop in Jacksonville,” he said. “This will slow down business, not shut it down.”

Chhey said about 90 percent of Fat Dog’s business comes from Jacksonville.

“From a business standpoint, I hope it doesn’t pass,” he said.

He added he expects the petition to pass but the vote to fail.

“There’s not enough registered voters who would be for it,” he said.

Skeeter Irby, owner of the Skeeter’s Convenience Mart in Rusk, said Rusk will likely be affected by a successful alcohol election in Jacksonville.

“Jacksonville elections will tear right into us,” Irby said. “We get quite a bit of business from south Jacksonville, but it’s hard to tell the percentage.”

Irby said he expects Rusk alcohol sales to be affected in a similar way to Cuney’s when Rusk went wet.

“If Cuney was down 20 percent, then that’s probably what those elections will do to us,” he said.

Irby said he never expected Rusk to go wet so he can’t offer an opinion on how he thinks a Jacksonville election would swing.

“The people against it haven’t come out and organized yet,” Irby said.

George Douglas, chair of Progress Jacksonville, said he is unconcerned with what people in Cuney think of Jacksonville alcohol elections.

“This is the United States and a free enterprise system” Douglas said.

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