Wine merchant trade webshop with customer price lists in London (2026)

The verdict in three sentences

For a London wine merchant supplying 1,200 independent shops, restaurants and bars from 2,500 lines, a trade webshop with customer-specific price lists, allocation quotas and ERP integration costs 40,000 to 70,000 GBP in 2026. A realistic goal is 35% of orders placed online in year one, starting with routine reorders and en primeur subscriptions. Delivery takes 4 months, provided you launch before the spring en primeur campaign rather than in the middle of it.

Why phone and spreadsheet no longer work for allocations and en primeur

Every sales director at a London merchant knows the pressure: each year a few hundred cases of top Burgundy, Rhône or Bordeaux are split among the best accounts. That split happens by phone, email and a shared spreadsheet. Mistakes are costly: a loyal independent forgotten, a Michelin-starred restaurant served twice, an allocation confirmed when the stock has gone.

The en primeur campaign adds a peak: within weeks, account managers receive hundreds of subscriptions with deposits, deliverable 18 to 24 months later, often held in bond. A trade portal solves three problems at once: each customer sees their prices, their allocations and their subscriptions, while the team keeps control of the arbitration.

The portal does not replace account managers. It removes low-value order taking so they spend more time tasting with buyers and sommeliers.

2026 budget: what 40,000 to 70,000 GBP covers

The range depends mainly on the ERP in place (a specialist wine and spirits ERP, Sage 200 or a bespoke tool), the number of allocation rules and whether reps need a mobile app.

Add an annual cost for hosting, licences and maintenance, often 10 to 15% of the initial build. At Kolonell, a trade webshop of this level falls under custom applications: scope and exact price are set in the quote after scoping.

The technical choice is between a B2B SaaS on a monthly subscription and a custom build. SaaS is fast for catalogue and price lists but often struggles with allocations and en primeur, which are specific to the wine trade. Custom costs more upfront and fits the house rules exactly.

Going live in 4 months without disrupting the season

The ideal plan starts in October for a February launch, ahead of the Bordeaux en primeur campaign in spring. Month 1: scoping, catalogue and price list import. Month 2: ERP integration and allocation rules. Month 3: closed pilot with 50 loyal accounts. Month 4: rollout to all 1,200 accounts, with each rep sending an activation link to their customers. Reps drive adoption: a customer invited personally by their account manager activates two to three times more often than one receiving a generic email.

Mini case study

Tom, sales director of a London wine merchant, handles about 30,000 orders a year. Each order taken by phone or email needs 9 minutes of sales admin time, that is 4,500 hours a year.

With 35% of orders online in year one, 10,500 orders now need only one minute of checking. The saving is 10,500 × 8 min = 1,400 hours a year, close to one sales administrator. At a fully loaded 38,000 GBP, that is about 30,000 GBP a year. On a 55,000 GBP build with 7,000 GBP running costs, payback lands around 25 months, before counting extra sales: online customers place on average one more order per quarter thanks to repeat baskets.

FAQ

Can one account see another customer's allocations?

No. Each account sees only its own quotas, for example 6 bottles of a grand cru out of a total allocation of 600. Arbitration stays in the sales team's back office.

How are en primeur deposits handled?

The portal takes a deposit, often 30 to 50% of the value, then raises the balance at delivery 18 to 24 months later, with an option to keep stock in bond. Subscriptions are linked to the customer account and the ERP.

Is duty calculated automatically?

Yes, depending on whether the customer buys duty paid or in bond, and on alcohol volume. Rules come from the ERP to avoid double maintenance.

How many customers really order online in year one?

A target of 35% of orders is realistic when reps invite customers themselves. Independent shops adopt faster than restaurants, which often order late at night by phone.

Do we need a mobile app?

Rarely at first. A responsive portal covers 90% of use cases, and an app can follow in phase two for reps on the road.

Let's scope your project. We scope your trade webshop, allocation rules and ERP integration for a 4-month launch ahead of the next en primeur campaign. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.