Places Features

The Wine Society was created in London in 1874 by a group of businessmen who'd been asked to dispose of crates of wine which had been sent to England for the Great Exhibition, and wound up, unwanted, in the cellars of the Royal Albert Hall.

The business moved to Stevenage in 1965, but remains true to the spirit of its founders. The Wine Society is a 'co-operative company' that exists to buy wine for its 110,000 members, ploughing any profits back into the business.

There are around 1,500 wines on the list. The Society's buyers are as good at sourcing wines under £6 as they are at buying vintage clarets at £100 or more – so there is always something for the wine lover, what ever their budget may be.

The BBC spoke to Euan Murray from The Wine Society to find out more…

"Our members pay a 'one-off' fee of £40 to hold a share in the Society, their membership then gives them a lifetime's access to a huge range of wines which they wouldn't be able to buy elsewhere on the High Street - with absolutely no pressure to buy" explained Euan.

And is the Society open to everyone?

"Absolutely! People of all ages and all walks of life come to The Wine Society for their wine.

"Our members can visit our site shop to browse through our wines before making their choice.  We also offer wine tasting events across the country and into Northern France" Euan told us.

And because of it's thriving membership, the future is looking good for the Society…

"We've just built our fourth warehouse in Stevenage, it's actually the second tallest warehouse in the UK and can store our wine up to eight pallets high, We now have room across all our warehouses to store over half a million cases of wine" said Euan.

"We are a 'not for profit' Company.  That means we are run exactly like any other business , the difference being that any profit that is made is ploughed straight back into the company, enabling us to expand into our new warehouse and run our own fleet of delivery vans and lorries. 

"The members own us, and it's the member's money that is put back into the Society for the benefit of all, allowing us to provide an even better range of wines and a better service.

So why Stevenage?

"Quite simply, it works for us!"

"The communication links are excellent, and there's an awful lot going on in the area.  It's right for us and for a lot of other businesses as well – and long may it continue!

The Wine Society has won the title of Mail Order Merchant of the Year in the International Wine Challenge twelve times in the past thirteen years, and was recently named Overall Wine Merchant of the Year.