Washington State Spirits Privatization: How Satisfied were Liquor Purchasers Before and After, and by Type of Retail Store in 2014?

Abstract

ABSTRACTBackground: In 2012 Washington State ended a wholesale/retail monopoly on liquor, permitting sale of spirits in stores with > 10,000 square feet. Implementation resulted in average price increases, but also five times the stores selling liquor. Objectives: As part of a privatization evaluation, we studied pre-post and between-store-type purchase experiences. Methods: A 2010 Washington State Liquor Control Board (LCB) survey of liquor purchasers (n = 599), and the 2014 baseline of a repeated telephone survey (1,202 residents; n = 465 purchasers), each included 10 LCB questions on satisfaction with purchase experiences, each attribute with graded response scale A = 4 to D = 1 and F (0 = fail). Analyses used t-tests for satisfaction differences by time and analysis of variance (ANOVA) for 2014 between-store satisfaction-level differences. Results: Five purchase features were rated more favorably after privatization (ps < .05–.001), including product supply, staff professionalism, location convenience, store hours, and prices (though price rated lowest both times); selection offered, courtesy, and checkout speed were unaltered, and number of staff and staff knowledge declined (both p < .001). Eight consumer experiences differed by store type: five satisfaction aspects (supply, selection, number of staff, operating hours, and checkout speed) were highest for liquor superstores, while location convenience favored grocery and drug stores, and price satisfaction favored wholesale (Costco) stores, with staff knowledge highest at liquor stores. Conclusions: Satisfaction with liquor purchases increased after privatization for half the consumer experiences. Availability (location convenience and store hours) was important to liquor purchasers. Such results are relevant to sustained support for the policy of privatizing spirits retail monopolies.