Visitor: why no TJ's in Colorado? too remote?

[toodie jane]

I know this has probably been discussed, but couldn't find it..

Seems Denver metro would support five or six, then Colorado Springs, Boulder, etc.
The whole area seems to be booming. New business parks and housing everywhere. Very few for sale signs on real estate.

thanks
tj from CA

[Peachie]

I ask every time I'm visiting a TJ's in another state and sometimes they try and say it's the distribution issue, with getting over the Rockies. ???? Don't other suppliers get over the Rockies all the time?

In reality, I got some managers to tell me it's the liquor law, as explained by posters above. And there was a recent law here in Colorado that, if passed, would have paved the way for multiple stores here to sell liquor. But the lobbyists for the smaller liquor stores were stronger than us TJ fans.

[toodie jane]

...stronger than the Liquor Lobby, though? That seems unlikely.

Sunflower seems to be filling some of the TJ gap at least for now.

[Peachie]

I agree, I don't think the Liquor Lobby is stronger than the TJ Lobby IF people knew about the law that didn't get passed.

It was HB1279:

http://www.2beerguys.com/blog/2010/02...

We TJ fans in Colorado should all get together and contact the people who proposed HB1279, but this time showing our numbers.

TJ's would KILL in Boulder.

[Squint]

Colorado has a strange beer and wine law. Only ONE location of each grocery store company (King Soopers, Safeway, etc) can sell beer and wine. Other locations can only sell 3.2 beer. Safeway's designated location is in Highlands Ranch and I just read in The Denver Post that the King Soopers opening soon in Glendale will be their designated location. We drove out to Las Vegas last year and I stocked up at TJ's before leaving. I asked the clerk about not being in CO and he said we had had that conversation before and it was because wine is such a big part of TJ sales that they won't open locations that can't sell wine. I said that he and I had not had the conversation...it was most likely another TJ-deprived Coloradan! I am driving out to CA in late August...I will be stocking up again :-)

[mpjmph]

I don't doubt that the TJ's clerk told you that, but there are TJ's locations in other states that don't permit wine sales in grocery stores, most notably NY and PA.

[Squint]

Yeah, I'm sure the wine sales are only part of it. Probably as some other posters have mentioned, the distribution is a big part of it since there are not too many more large cities in the Rocky Mountain region other than Denver...maybe Colorado Springs, Ft. Collins and Albuquerque.

[agoodbite]

THe Albuquerque portion of your argument doesn't hold true since there's a TJ in Santa Fe. Unless the company provides answers, it's all speculation.

[Squint]

No argument here...purely speculating on my part. Only TJ knows for sure!

[roro1831]

The law is the same here in NJ, at least with regards to the one location in a grocery being able to sell beer and wine. We have TJ's here.

[livetocook]

They don't have it up here in Canada either. I'm curious to see this place since it's always being talked about on here :(

[jujuthomas]

I was in Breckenridge this weekend and someone said they've been emailing the company to ask for one. the response was that they won't move into CO because they can't sell wine & beer in the stores. This seems strange to me, because they are in PA and they can't sell wine & beer in the stores here.

[ospreycove]

Don't feel left out!!! NoTJ in Florida too!!!!!

[smartie]

yes I am surprised too since south florida seems like a part of NYC sometimes (tags and snowbirds).

[mpjmph]

TJ's has stores in several states with restrictions on beer and/or wine sales in grocery stores, so I doubt that's the reason. tinkerszs might be onto something with the distribution warehouse.

[jujuthomas]

tinkerszs explanation makes more sense to me as well. Glad I live in PA! :)

[Joltingjoey]

Rhode Island finally got a TJ less than 2 years ago. It doesn't sell beer or wine, and it's only about 40 miles from the main distribution warehouse in Massachusetts. Why it took so long to get here is unknown to me. I've heard rumors that the powerful grocers' lobby worked to keep them out, but I can't confirm this.

[invinotheresverde]

MA limits the amount of chains selling booze to three total stores per state, so they don't get much alcohol action here, either.

[ddavis]

I don't know that they can't sell beer and wine in the stores in Colorado. There is a liquor store in the Costco in Eagle, Colorado. I think it is a separate legal entity, but it is at the store and the door is right next to Costco's front door.

[tinkerszs]

I have heard it is because Colorado is not close enough to a distribution warehouse.

[mpjmph]

TJ's is only in 27 states plus DC, mostly on both coasts and along the Great Lakes. They are expanding, but slowly. The most likely reason there are no TJ's in CO is that they just haven't gotten there yet.

[agoodbite]

There aren't any in TX either. I've heard speculation as to why, but nothing concrete.