Bryan and Andrea McGinness recently purchased the national WineStyles franchise and moved its corporate headquarters to West Des Moines, Iowa.
Sometimes, a reflective mood hits me and I want to go somewhere “where everyone knows my name.” As a baby boomer, it’s a malady known as lingering “Cheers Syndrome.” The only known cure is walking into a favorite place and immediately being greeted by name. (If the person shouting your name is Sam or Woody, consider yourself permanently healed.)
- In central Iowa, my personal “Cheers” establishment is WineStyles which is nestled in West Glen. WineStyles is a national wine boutique franchise. It has a warm, inviting atmosphere and some of the friendliest folks around. Two of those WineStyles people are Bryan and Andrea McGinness.
“We visited our first WineStyles in 2005 and fell in love with the concept of demystifying the wine buying experience. From there, we launched our initial store in West Glen and it quickly moved to the top within the franchise organization,” explained Bryan.
“When former WineStyles CEO Robert Spuck decided to retire in 2012, he approached Andrea and me about purchasing the entire national franchise. He felt we had the passion and winning desire to grow the company. We were excited about the opportunity and it has proven to be a profitable, recession-proof business.”
It’s easy to see how WineStyles in West Glen has achieved double digit growth every year since 2006. CEO Bryan and COO Andrea grew their business through unwavering passion, smart business strategies and a strong work ethic. They also invited Bryan’s brother (Jeff McGinness) to join the business as general counsel and chief compliance officer.
When asked about what makes WineStyles different, Bryan smiled and said, “We offer the only wine club with a club house. There are a lot of wine clubs across the U.S. that ship wines to their customers. However, at WineStyles, our stores have a distinctly warm feeling when you walk inside. We encourage people to taste, learn and enjoy wines as well as beers, chocolates and cheeses.”
Right now, 50 WineStyles stores can be found across the country located in Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, California, Illinois and Iowa, to name just a few states.
It was fun listening to Bryan discuss his transition from franchisee to franchise owner. As I left WineStyles, two thoughts popped into my head. First, entrepreneurialism is alive and well in Iowa. Second, I have to get back soon to try out the latest chocolates and cheeses, and okay, perhaps a glass of wine too.