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New owner, same feel at Dunedin liquor store

The new owner plans no changes. Hank Lueken will help "as long as they need me."

By NICOLE HUTCHESON
Published March 2, 2007

Lueken's Big Town Liquors, the longtime Dunedin landmark, has a new owner: a Palm Harbor businessman who is making his first foray into the liquor business.

Chamoun Jallo, 52, owns gas stations in Palm Harbor, Oldsmar, Clearwater and Tampa and also operates a car wash and shopping center in Oldsmar.

Jallo, who immigrated to the United States from Lebanon in the late 1970s, said a January visit to Lueken's convinced him the liquor store business should be his next endeavor.

"I saw the place, the guy keeps it in good shape," said Jallo, a married father of five. "It seemed like good opportunity, a good business."

Jallo said he walked into the store in January and asked Henry Lueken how much he'd sell it for. Lueken told him a price. Jallo agreed on the spot.

Though neither would disclose the deal's cost, Lueken estimates the inventory in his store is valued at $4.8-million. In addition to the stock, Lueken sold the naming rights to the store and the liquor license to Jallo.

The 20,000-square-foot store has long been known for its family-feel, with aisles of options and low-prices. Lueken's signature bulk purchasing style kept costs down over the years, he said.

If Tanqueray Gin was on sale, Lueken would buy 600 to 800 cases - six bottles to a case. With a full-fledged warehouse in the rear of the store, there was always room for the additional stock until there was room on the retail shelves.

"In the liquor business, you buy when the supplier wants to sell," said Lueken, 68, who lives in Dunedin. "You don't buy when you need something."

Before going into the liquor store business, Lueken worked as a grocer, operating seven stores throughout the state. Lueken, who has diabetes, said a recent visit to the doctors office with complaints of arthritis prompted him to consider getting out of the retail business for good.

Jallo said he plans to keep Lueken's staff in tact, with his son, John, as the manager. Lueken said he would continue helping Jallo out "as long as they need me." His only immediate retirement plan is to attend his 50-year class reunion in South Dakota.

[Last modified March 2, 2007, 06:51:07]