Rare whiskey and wine collectors travel long distances to acquire the rarest and oldest bottles. Thanks to NFT technology, whiskey and wine lovers can now buy rare specimens without leaving their homes, say BlockBar’s Dov and Sam Falic.
As an asset, premium spirits have outperformed gold and the S&P 500 index in recent years. The number of collectors of these rare spirits has also increased by 582% over the past decade. The investment itself is completely crisis proof.
However, there is a risk, namely damaged liquids. For example, if you buy a rare, high-quality bottle of wine or spirits, the bottle may have been improperly stored or even counterfeit.
Improperly stored bottles may contain spoiled liquid, rendering the bottle worthless. It is extremely important for collectors purchasing these luxury products to ensure that they are truly getting the liquid they desire. And once you have the bottle in your hands, you must do everything to store it properly to protect your investment. NFT technology offers exactly the right solution for this.
Problems of whiskey collectors
Imagine this: you live in Singapore and are a collector of rare and expensive whisky. In a boutique of the brand at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York – the only boutique of this brand in the USA – you will finally find the coveted bottle you are looking for. You call the shop but unfortunately they cannot ship the bottle. They can only accept payment if you come to the store in person. Also, they can only book the content if you booked a flight through JFK airport.
So you book a flight. You fly to New York for hours, collect the bottle and immediately take another flight to Singapore, bottle in hand. Sounds a bit far-fetched and outdated in today’s highly digital world, doesn’t it? Unfortunately, current liquor shipping restrictions have made this scenario a reality for top collectors. They travel around the world to collect the bottles they have purchased but cannot ship.
Scaling e-commerce platforms has also become increasingly difficult, as each country has very different import regulations and laws. Even in the United States, shipping alcohol across states can be more difficult than expected.
The democratization of the digital sale of luxury alcohol is imperative, and we can approach this task with a modern approach.
We use technology (specifically non-fungible tokens or NFTs) to verify authenticity, allowing us to operate at the heart of the retail, e-commerce and distribution experience. Buying asset-linked NFTs is a better option for customers than buying them physically. Physical bottles are stored by us in a secure facility in Singapore. This facility features 24/7 temperature monitoring, high security, and motion sensors.
Customers can purchase NFTs with a credit card or with Ethereum. If you want the bottle yourself, you can “burn” the NFT to get the bottle. Or you can resell the item through the BlockBar.com marketplace. Our customers can also donate the NFTs. The digital version of the bottle serves as your receipt and proof of authenticity. Simply email the person you wish to gift the bottle to and proof of ownership is transferred free of charge.
Instead of walking a million miles to the bottle, customers can buy and store BlockBar’s fine wines and rare spirits anywhere in the world.
Since we as customers couldn’t find any solutions ourselves or anyone who could help us solve these problems, we developed our own solutions. We work directly with distillers and use NFTs as a commercial item to provide proof of ownership. Once the bottle has been shipped, it can no longer be offered for sale because BlockBar can no longer guarantee the authenticity of the bottle.
Now collectors and connoisseurs can find, purchase and properly store their favorite bottles without worrying about shipping, quality assurance or the risk of counterfeiting.
About the authors
Dov Falic is the co-founder and CEO of BlockBar, Inc. He was born in Miami and raised in Panama City. As the next generation member of the Falic Group and owner of the largest duty free shop in the Western Hemisphere, Dov was exposed to the luxury and retail industries from an early age. Previously, he held the positions of Global Head of Spirits and Executive Vice President of the LATAM Division. In this role, Dov helped grow Paneco, the largest e-commerce delivery platform in Singapore and Israel, created one of the largest spirits distribution channels in LATAM, and led the sourcing of spirits and wines for DFA.
Samuel Falic Samuel Falic, co-founder and COO of BlockBar, Inc, was born and raised in Miami. Samuel studied finance and law. His background in finance and law has allowed him to hold various positions within the company. After initially working in the legal department, he progressed to the position of director of business development.
Warning
All information contained on our website has been researched to the best of our knowledge and belief. Journalistic contributions are for general information purposes only. Any action taken by the reader based on information found on our website is entirely at their own risk.