Wayne Business Owner Named Market Watch's 'Retailer of the Year'

Gary Fisch, founder, owner and president of Gary’s Wine & Marketplace, has been named 2014 Retailer of the Year by Market Watch, the nation’s leading beverage-alcohol industry publication.

“Gary Fisch has turned his love of wine and customer service into a $50 million business that’s thriving in northern NJ,” begins the cover story, aptly entitled “Passion Unparalleled,” in the September Leaders issue. The profile focuses on the keys to Gary’s success: creative merchandising, broad-based selection, competitive pricing, an upscale, lifestyle-driven shopping experience... and, even after 27 years in the business, his unwavering, infectious enthusiasm.

“I’m still jazzed up every day to come to work, which always makes it fresh,” he says in the piece. “I love wine, I love merchandising and dealing with guests. My favorite day is Saturday, because that’s when I can talk to people about wine. It’s what I’ve done forever, and what I do best.”

Gary’s Wine & Marketplace began as a small wine shop in Madison in 1987 and has grown to one of the largest fine wine businesses in the United States, with $50+ million in revenues and stores in Wayne, Madison and Bernardsville. A commitment to friendly, attentive service by knowledgeable employees; unparalleled breadth and depth of selection, including one of the country’s best selections of California wines; passion for wine, beer, spirits and the related products that the company sells; extensive staff travel each year to the wine-producing regions of the world; and myriad wine andfood events for the public set Gary’s apart.

“It’s tremendously gratifying to be recognized in this way,” adds Fisch of the Market Watch award. “It motivates me to continue growing and evolving the brand even further. I’m very excited about our future.”

And Fisch has no plans to stop. Expansion plans include a fourth store, targeted to open mid-November in the south-central NJ township of Hillsborough. The initial store will be a temporary “pop-up” for holiday shopping, while the larger (9,000 sq. ft.) permanent “Marketplace” location (Nelson’s Corner Shopping Center, Route 206 and Amwell Rd. in Hillsborough) is built out in anticipation of a March 2015 launch.

Gary’s Wine & Marketplace’s Wayne location is located at 1308 Rt. 23 North, Wayne, NJ 07470 973.633.3900.