Ask a Lawyer - Archive

Hi, I started a company only on paper, and before I start investing serious money into this company I would like to know if it is at all legal. The company name is BOOOOZE.COM or 1-800 BOOOOZE which in fact is similar to 1800 Flowers. I will set up in every city in the United States an agent (mom and pop liquor store) and when I receive an order online, for lets say Miami I will call my agent in Miami and have them deliver the booze to the consumer directly, upon delivery the consumer will need to show proof of age.

I think you can be rest assured that if this was a viable idea, someone would have already done it before in some form or another. The liquor industry is heavily regulated in every state so it would be very difficult to comply with all the regulations and still make a profit. Regulations would include prohibitions or limitations on the transfer of liquor across state lines, proper license for selling liquor in each state, sales taxes, excise taxes, prohibitions against selling liquor to minors, insurance requirements, you name it. A better approach than a carte blanche liquor sales business may be to focus in a niche or specialty area. There are wine makers and other businesses, for example, that specialize in limited mail order shipments of wine.

You'd definitely want to do more research and due diligence before trying to launch of business of this nature. The capital requirements would also be significant. Go see a lawyer, too, who specializes in this area.