Tier Targets

A bar-wide pour cost goal of 18% works for the middle of your inventory and breaks at the extremes. Tiered targets keep the same discipline at every price point.

The breakdown problem

• Well-priced bottles ($12 well vodka sold at $7) sit at 6 to 9% pour cost. Looks "way under target" against an 18% goal. Actually correct: well bottles are pure margin engines.
• Premium spirits ($300 Pappy at 18% pour cost is a $20 pour) is wildly unrealistic. Real bars charge $80 to $150 a pour, which lands the bottle at 30 to 50% pour cost.

The default ladder

PourCost ships with a five-tier ladder, sanity-checked against Denver bar program norms. Tiers are based on bottle cost, since bottle cost is a clean proxy for what guests are willing to pay.

• Well Priced. Bottle under $25. Target 10%.
• Call Priced. Bottle $25 to $45. Target 18%.
• Premium. Bottle $45 to $80. Target 22%.
• Top Shelf. Bottle $80 to $150. Target 25%.
• Allocated. Bottle over $150. Target 30%.

Cocktails are different

Cocktails do not use the tier ladder. They use the bar-wide pour cost goal. A cocktail recipe is adjustable in a way a bottle isn't, so a single bar-wide target keeps the math meaningful.