How this neighbourhood wine shop and bar is embracing technology as it grows

Franklin’s Wine is the brainchild of owners & Directors, Benjit & Aneeta. As avid wine fans, but by no means experts, the Kensington locals decided they wanted a neighbourhood wine shop, specialising in artisan-led, high quality produce, chosen by top sommeliers & saw an opportunity on their doorstep in Thackeray Street!

A family run business, Franklin’s Wine is a boutique store offering a curated selection of wines from across the globe. The space allows like-minded wine lovers to convene, discuss and learn about the different wines chosen by the shop’s qualified sommeliers. The experience is constantly changing, tailored with customers’ feedback and reviews in mind with Franklin’s Wines providing an engaging space that hosts monthly tasting events allowing customers to interact with winemakers and importers. The couple also lends their wine expertise to their customers by providing wine consultancy services for individuals, weddings, and events.

We caught up with lain Alcott, all round wine geek & good food aficionado & the group General manager at Franklin’s Wine.

On Franklin’s Wine

We currently have one venue, with more on the horizon! Our Westbourne Grove venue, is situated in the heart of Notting Hill, just off Portobello Market is a lively wine & cocktail bar, with an amazing selection of fine wines & cocktails to drink in, or to go! Both venues offer cheese boards, charcuteries & a selection of nibbles to accompany your drinks!

On choosing Square for their business

Finding the right POS is always tricky! It’s difficult to find a package that manages & executes everything successfully. Fortunately we found Square and resolved our issues!

franklinewines2

We decided to make the switch to Square from our previous provider as the functionality is excellent, with a really simple user interface. Everything is very intuitive! We have been using the Square POS & Square Terminals at our venue and have gradually added different products as we have grown.

We have adopted the customer loyalty points system, which our Sommeliers can use to check a guest’s past orders, & offer bespoke, new recommendations based on their personal tastes!

On staff and customer experience of Square

Our guests are always commenting on how slick the Terminals & POS look - so simple to use, & quick - which helps us make sales as quickly as possible!

For our staff, the new Square Stand is one of the most simple, effective POS systems my team has used, allowing us to produce quick orders, keep the wine flowing & our guests happy!

On plans for the future and how the business has grown in recent years

The pandemic has been crazy for everyone & hopefully there is some light at the end of the tunnel! Our business is based upon our people, so we are always looking to grow, develop & expand our team as the business grows! Hopefully, we should be popping up at more sites across London over the next few years!

Our main focus is to always offer an amazing experience for our guests & we shall continue to do so! Whether that be coming in to chat wine with our team for a bottle at home, or having an evening out with friends - hopefully, you’ll see us pop up in an area near you soon! Watch this space!

On the future of the wine industry

There has been a real push & focus in recent years on sustainability in the wine world & we are 100% behind this movement. Every wine has a story, & our mission as professionals is to educate & inspire wine lovers by telling these stories.

You can find Franklin’s Wine in Notting Hill, London, and learn more about their business online.

Contact sales

Contact our sales team to learn more about how Square could help your business.