Kristen Gardner Beal and Lance Lemon believe there’s a wine for everyone. And if you live in the Richmond area, they’d love to deliver it right to your front door.
“We believe there’s a wine out there for every palate, and we’re pretty dedicated to helping people find that,” Beal said.
The friends co-founded RichWine, a Richmond-based online wine retailer, in late 2019.
The pair's original vision was to set up a brick-and-mortar shop, but when the pandemic hit, an unexpected opportunity presented itself. Beal and Lemon pivoted their concept, offering same-day wine delivery to the greater Richmond area, as well as shipping throughout the commonwealth and curb-side pickup.
“I think delivery should be… a trusted option for folks, something that’s very accessible, pandemic or not, because sometimes you just want to save time,” Beal said.
So far it’s working out pretty well. Business, Lemon said, is “booming.”
“It’s been really busy,” Beal said. “We’ve had great community support. We got a large following pretty quickly, and it’s growing.”
Both Beal and Lemon grew up in Mechanicsville, Virginia, and attended the University of Virginia. They moved separately to New York City, where Lemon worked as a wine sales representative for Frederick Wildman and Sons and opened two Brooklyn wine shops.
Beal, meanwhile, cultivated her own passion for wine, which inspired her to explore Virginia's wine country and travel to places like South Africa.
“That passion and interest turned into a business opportunity,” she said.
Over drinks in New York, Lemon and Beal talked about opening a wine store together back in Richmond.
Today, RichWine’s online catalogue includes about 180 labels, ranging in price from $11.99 to $74.99. The company’s focus is on “honest wines” — natural, organic, biodynamic wines that are made using clean farming practices. With low sugar content and low sulphur dioxide, the selection includes labels buyers are not as likely to find at retailers, Lemon said.
RichWine, a team of four that includes Beal’s mother, provides curb side pickup at Hatch Kitchen, where their office is located. The company offers weekly and monthly subscription services so customers can sample a range of wine selections. The startups also offers a wine program curated for Urban Hang Suite, owned by Lemon’s sister, Kelli Lemon.
A physical location where people can peruse a vast selection, ask questions and attend events is still on the wish list for Beal and Lemon. For now, though, they are focused on spreading the simple pleasures of a good glass of wine.
“Any time you are having a glass of wine, you should be smiling,” Lemon said.