Standard Motors Building
Jan. 25, 2014 By Michael Florio
A new wine shop opened earlier this week on the first floor of the Standard Motors Building, an iconic building best known for being the home of Brooklyn Grange, the rooftop farming enterprise.
The wine shop, called Glassful and located at 37-18 Northern Boulevard, is promoting itself as offering a unique selection of wines—from the big name wineries to the lesser known product from the around the globe.
“The thing that makes us different is our selection of wine,” said Adria Jover, the co-founder and CEO of Glassful. “We have access through our sommelier [wine expert] to a bunch of distributors and importers from Europe, South America and local wineries.”
Most wine shops just deal with the larger, more mainstream distributors, Jover said. He said his sommellier, Alessio De Sensi, has developed relationships with distributors—big and small– for over 25 years.
Jover said that De Sensi has access to small family wineries around the world.
Jover believes that the Long Island City/Astoria marketplace is the perfect spot for a wine store like his—especially as more people move into the area.
“People always want this business in their neighborhood,” he said.
While Glassful opened its doors last Monday, Jover has been conducting business online—at glassful.com—for some time.
Online customers can sign up for a $59-per-month subscription, which provides them with three bottles of wine per month.
The company selects the three wines based on a survey the subscriber takes prior to starting the service.
However, Jover said, the time is right for a brick-and mortar store, which adds a new dimension. “We want a human presence,” Jover said.
The Glassful, as of Friday, still didn’t possess a storefront sign. However, in the upcoming weeks Jover said he will work on promoting the store. He will be receiving a storefront sign soon to help attract business.
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