North Carolina alcohol sales reveal who spends more on booze: Charlotte or Raleigh?
The holiday season is now underway — and that means the demand for alcohol in North Carolina is high.
ABC Stores traditionally see a spike in sales over the holiday months as both retail customers rise and restaurant traffic surges. With that in mind, the Triangle Business Journal — CBJ’s sister publication — has analyzed data reported by the state’s various ABC Boards to determine which parts of North Carolina consume the most alcohol.
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Wake County and Mecklenburg County, home to Raleigh and Charlotte, respectively, saw the highest sale figures in the state in 2021. The combined amount for liquor sales to the public, liquor sales to mixed-beverage permittees and fortified wine sales to the public in Wake County was $190.37 million. The Mecklenburg County ABC Board topped that, with $205.03 million recorded.
The difference would have been expected in past years, due to Mecklenburg County’s larger population. But the 2020 Census saw Wake County surpass Mecklenburg in population size, with the former now boasting 1.15 million residents and the latter with 1.12 million people. The per-capita alcohol sales figures mirror that ranking with Mecklenburg at $182.74 and Wake at $165.54.
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