Mountview Wine & Liquor Owners Bansi and
Aakash Kalola, Board Member, Indian American Package Store Association of Connecticut.

Mountview Wine & Liquor
727 Rubber Avenue
Naugatuck, CT

Square footage: 4,500

Years in operation: 6 years

By Sara Capozzi

Located in Naugatuck’s Mountview Plaza, Mountview Wine & Liquor continues to deliver its exceptional selection and friendly customer service to the area. Purchased by Aakash and Bansi Kalola in August 2019, the shop is the couple’s first venture in the package store industry—and they’ve seen great success in the past six years.

When the Kalolas first moved to Connecticut from upstate New York, they were seeking a new retail business. Upon considering different options in a variety of sectors, they learned about opportunities available in the beer, wine and spirits business through friends who were already in the industry. Local package store owner and friend Ashwin Ghetia helped them as they purchased Mountview Wine & Liquor, offering continued support as they began to run the store. “We were new to the industry and didn’t know anything about wine and spirits; he helped us learn it,” Bansi said.

Upon taking over Mountview, the Kalolas worked to reorganize the store to make it easier to shop, moving the shelving, reorganizing product categories and changing the direction of the aisles. They installed new coolers, including the shop’s walk-in Beer Cave, with the help of Aakash’s brother, Sagar, who also created the store’s colorful signage.

The Kalolas have learned a lot and have witnessed a shift in buying trends since they first opened. “This industry has totally changed in the past six years,” Aakash said. “People who used to buy IPAs are now moving to THC beverages and ready-to-drink cocktails.” Many customers have become increasingly health-conscious, leading to growing sales in organic and sugar-free wines and beer, wine and spirits in the nonalcoholic category. Shoppers also gravitate toward products from local spirits and beer brands, and bourbon and whiskey are top-selling spirits categories.

The popularity of wine varietals changes with the seasons, with whites more popular in the warmer months and reds selling more in colder months, and around the holidays people shop more for Italian and French wines. Mountview also stocks a wide variety of Portuguese wines and spirits for its Portuguese-American clientele.

Mountview employees consist of a knowledgeable staff—many of whom worked for the store’s former owner—who assists customers looking for a certain product or pairing suggestions. The shop keeps in touch with its clientele through its social media channels, sharing news and events such as its regular tastings, which are hosted every Friday and Saturday.

According to Bansi, customers appreciate the Kalolas attention to service. The team is happy to make special orders for shoppers, and every month, it chooses a different item to discount, offering a price that is 10% below the state minimum (as the state’s regulations allow). Shoppers have come to rely on the shop’s plentiful and well-organized selections, accented with Bansi’s decorations for each season. “They tell me they always look forward to coming in and seeing something new,” she said.