Longevity. Virginia ABC has it. The authority marked its 90th anniversary on March 22, 2024.

We celebrated with a look back. We recognized our longest-serving teammates—five who’ve served 35 or more years with Virginia ABC and another five with more than 40 years of service. We also recognized the staff of our Clifton Forge store which still operates out of its 1934 location at 531 Main Street.

Virginia ABC opened five new stores in fiscal year 2024, including the authority’s 400th store, located in Jonesville (Store 528). Other locations included Leesburg (Store 530), Norfolk (Store 405), Alexandria (Store 529) and Hanover (Store 442). We modernized eight stores, relocated seven stores, converted three stores to counter service and closed two stores completing the fiscal year with 402 stores across the Commonwealth.

Our product selection included over 400 Virginia-distilled Spirits which generated $21.5M in sales with more than 600 thousand bottles sold for a second consecutive year.

Throughout the year, weekend sales (Saturday and Sunday) went up by 13%. Sunday sales increased by $19.7 million to $122 million. Friday led all days, with $333.5 million in sales.

The top five stores by gallons sold were Store 256 in Virginia Beach (108,681 gallons), Store 219 in Fairfax (106,587), Store 331 in Short Pump (89,882), Store 278 in Virginia Beach (89,498), Store 280 in Chesapeake (89,283).

As our business grew, so did our productivity. Operational efficiency increased by 6.3% year over year in our distribution center. Teammates broke an all-time production record three separate times, culminating in an outbound volume of 41,635 cases; they set a new record for automation processing with 27.3% of daily volume coming from the automated dispenser.

Teammates in our distribution center shipped 6,567,130 cases of product to ABC stores across the Commonwealth where associates completed 37,963,520 customer transactions. Teammates in our Hearings, Appeals and Judicial Services Division handled 565 cases, with 356 settled by expediated consent. Our Office of Legal Counsel handled 99 negotiated resolutions and responded to 381 FOIA and general requests. Our Bureau of Law Enforcement worked with 19,053 licensed retail establishments, issued 21,053 retail licenses and another 25,379 banquet and special event licenses. We continued to put our customers first in every area of our business.

The Bureau of Law Enforcement earned its third consecutive accreditation from the Virginia Law Enforcement Professional Standards Commission (VLEPSC).

We engaged with our customers beyond the store experience. Digitally, we gained more than 8,500 new Facebook followers on our Virginia ABC and Spirited Virginia accounts. An additional 14,867 followers joined us on Instagram. Open and click rates on our three e-newsletters (Licensee, Distillery and Spirited Virginia) remained above the industry standards. Our flagship quarterly magazine, Spirited Virgina, continued to receive tremendous support fromvour supplier community, thus enabling us to produce an-award-winning magazine at no cost to Virginia taxpayers.

Virginia ABC continued to focus on its mission of strengthening the Commonwealth through public safety, education and revenue derived from the responsible regulation and sale of alcoholic beverages.

As Chairman, I have great confidence in the leadership we now have in place, and I am optimistic about the future of Virginia ABC.

/s/ Timothy D. Hugo
Virginia ABC Chairman