Glass Half Full
Streamlining the wine list at Crazy Bear
“Over and above what we’d save anyway by reducing our wine list, we expect to save an additional 10-15% by working with Lynx Purchasing,”
Crazy Bear operates two boutique hotels and members’ clubs “for the curious, the indulgent and the gloriously non-conformist”. Its countryside locations in Stadhampton, Oxfordshire and Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire offer classic British menus, as well as authentic Thai food, alongside s drinks offer that ranges from wine and champagne to spirits and cocktails.
Challenge
After joining Crazy Bear as Group Sommelier and Beverage Manager in 2025, Matthew Wakeford identified challenges with the drinks range and particularly the wine list, which meant the Crazy Bear business was not getting best value from its significant annual spend on wine and spirits. “There was a very extensive wine list at both sites, that really wasn’t fit for purpose,” he says. “People could just add suppliers, so there wasn’t much cost control, and we couldn’t establish good supplier relationships because we weren’t buying enough from any one supplier.” This also had an impact on the customer experience, as there were too many wines for serving staff to be able to make confident recommendations, while the small numbers of some wines listed meant they were more likely to be unavailable when ordered by customers.
Solution
Having previously worked for national drinks supplier Matthew Clark Bibendum, “I knew that they worked with Lynx Purchasing, and that the Bibendum wine range could provide what we needed,” says Matthew. With Lynx Purchasing already working with Crazy Bear in other product areas, it was quick and simple to arrange for Bibendum to look at the drinks range
“Crazy Bear doesn’t need a big wine list in terms of our clientele. Having a smaller list focused on brands that sell is far better,” says Mathew,
As a result, the Crazy Bear wine list is being reduced from around 300 wines to 100. “It’s about reducing the number of wines we buy, and building relationships with one or two suppliers. That’s where Lynx Purchasing are really useful to us, they can monitor invoices and let me know what’s going on in terms of buying in different parts of the business.”
Crazy Bear has an established relationship with champagne brand Lanson, who will continue to supply directly. Other champagnes have been removed from the list, and Bibendum will supply a British sparkling wine and a prosecco, as well as spirits.
There was a training issue in ensuring that the whole Bibendum team, including the bars, understand the benefits of buying from a small number of suppliers. This enables prices to be negotiated based on the larger volumes being purchased. “Lynx can flag up straight away if any invoices are going through that shouldn’t be, for example if someone orders spirits from an old price list.”
Result
“Over and above what we’d save anyway by reducing our wine list, we expect to save an additional 10-15% by working with Lynx Purchasing,” says Matthew. “Our P&L is going to be a lot better for having a faster moving list. We can hold stock better, and the quality of customer service improves by having fewer wines out of stock or unavailable
“I talk to Lynx all the time, the communication is great. I go straight to Christian at Lynx when I need anything, because if I go through a supplier he’s already worked with, I know that will work for us too.”
