Wines of Iowa is an independent retailer of Iowa wine, wine accessories and home décor located in the historic shopping district of Valley Junction, in West Des Moines. Owners & sisters, Jorene & Rae Ann King have been in business together for 8 years. Two and a half years ago, we opened Wines of Iowa.
We are the only wine retailer in Central Iowa specializing in only Iowa wines. We carry wines from 3 dozen Iowa wineries, and over 300 varieties. We offer complimentary wine tasting. We even have space for private wine tastinlgs for corporate or social groups with advance reservations. We offer a friendly environment for novices to aficionados to experience the fun of finding a new favorite wine made locally. We expand the shop local to include bus trips to the wineries & vineyards. Our customers know they are buying local and supporting Iowa vineyards.

Our Dream Big to Grow Here:
1. Wines of Iowa needs branded. We hear all the time, “ How long have you been here?” We want to change that to, “We found you!” Logoed wine glasses, corkscrews, t-shirts, bottle gift boxes, & reusable bottle bags will help spread the word. Our customers will help us promote our business by using these logoed items with friends and family.

2. We have a variety of wines, but want to expand our inventory to include food items that pair with wine. Offering crackers, cheeses, dips & chocolates will allow us to make gift baskets. This would be another avenue of income We can promote Wines of Iowa as your source for corporate gifts for clients.

3. Wines of Iowa’s website needs updated to allow better access for mobile users. We also want to expand our website to allow eCommerce. More and more customers, shop online. Offering the option of online purchases will add another source of income.

We applied because we know Wines of Iowa is a fantastic local shop in the heart of Iowa that benefits our communities. We sell wines from 3 dozen local Iowa wineries, helping many other local businesses grow!
We will use the money to increase our brand awareness in store & online. So many local businesses need help with branding, & the one thing standing in their way is usually the money. By getting our logos on merchandise in-store as well as on reusable bags & boxes, we can employ our current customers to share our name with the world! We would increase our inventory to carry foods & snacks that pair perfect with our local Iowa wines, such as crackers, cheeses as well as chocolate. This will open up our brand for corporate gifting as well as daily add-ons. As the market continues to adapt, we know we must adopt new forms of communication. So many consumers look towards & rely at shopping online, we know there is a huge opportunity for Wines of Iowa to capture that market as well. Finally, a place to support local open around the clock!

All in all, we will use the money to take the practical & necessary steps forward to grow our little 'sip' of heaven here in the heart of Iowa. Dream BIG, #SipLocal!