A new independent bottle shop has opened in Brunswick East with a simple proposition: most people don’t buy wine by grape variety or region, they buy it based on the occasion and how much they want to spend.
Called Drop Shop, the new concept comes from a team that includes Pinot Palooza founder and Wine Victoria chair Dan Sims, former Dan Murphy’s and Blackhearts & Sparrows retail specialist Courtney Keegan, and Common State founder Luke McKinnon.
Located on Lygon Street, the compact 60-square-metre store takes a different approach to traditional liquor retail. Rather than organising wines by varietal or geography, products are grouped into occasion-focused categories including Weekday ($15–25), Party ($25–40) and Fancy ($40+).
The same philosophy extends across the store’s broader drinks range, with beer, spirits, RTDs and non-alcoholic options also selected with simplicity and ease of choice in mind.
According to the founders, the concept was developed in response to changing consumer behaviour and a desire to make buying alcohol less intimidating and time-consuming.
“We’ve created a space you move through instinctively and walk out of feeling good,” said Luke McKinnon.
Unlike larger bottle shop chains that may stock thousands of wines, Drop Shop carries around 150 wines at any given time. The range has been selected by Sims and Keegan, with a strong focus on Victorian producers alongside emerging labels from further afield.
The founders say the intentionally limited range is designed to make decision-making easier rather than restrict choice.
The retail experience itself is also a major part of the concept. Interiors were designed by Melbourne studio We Are Humble, while branding was created by designer Hamish Childs. The neon-lit store draws inspiration from Japanese convenience stores, with a clean and highly organised layout intended to prioritise speed, simplicity and discovery.
McKinnon believes liquor retail has been slower to evolve than many other consumer categories.
“We’ve seen entire categories transformed by better retail,” he said. “The experience has become part of the product.”
Visit Drop Shop
Drop Shop is now open at 70 Lygon Street, Brunswick East.
Opening Hours
- Monday–Thursday: 11am–9pm
- Friday–Saturday: 11am–10pm
- Sunday: 11am–8pm
For more information, visit dropshopdrinks.com or follow @dropshopdrinks on Instagram.
