BERRY HILL, Tenn. (WKRN) — A retail space for non-alcoholic drinks in Nashville is returning to its roots, so to speak.

Killjoy Nashville, the city's first "booze-free beverage shop" has announced it will be opening a second brick-and-mortar location in Berry Hill.

"Killjoy is a retail store that sells beer, wine, spirits and functional beverages, but everything is alcohol-free," Founder Stephanie Styll told News 2.

The inspiration to open an alcohol-free beverage shop came from her own life, according to Styll.

"I got a little older and realized drinking wasn't really serving me anymore and, you know, news story after news story coming out about how alcohol is harmful to your health," she told News 2. "I started learning about alcohol alternatives and how helpful they could be in this journey, but they were super hard to find."

Multiple visits to retail stores to find alcohol-free options served nearly fruitless, Styll added, so she decided to take the bull by the horns and open up her own one-stop shop for alcohol-free options.

"I kept wishing there could be a place where you could go and they would all be in one place and someone could be really knowledgeable and you could sample things," she said. "After wishing for that for a little while, I decided I guess I'm going to be the one to do it."

Sobriety is gaining popularity in the U.S., with sales of non-alcoholic beverages surging to more than $800 million in 2023. Whether it's for medical reasons, due to family history of alcoholism, or simply a desire to increase overall health, those going alcohol-free are growing in numbers.

"There's so much more awareness now," Styll said of the "booze-free beverage" shop. "When we started people had no idea that there were non-alcoholic wines, that there were non-alcoholic spirits. There are so many alcohol alternatives. People are really realizing that there's better technology. We've all been drinking alcohol and dealing with hangover and shame. There's a ton of better things to drink."

The rise in alcohol-free fun also saw a partnership form between Killoy and a local favorite.

Killjoy and Gramp's Garage Bar, owned by Daddy's Dogs' Big Daddy himself, Sean Porter, host a weekly alcohol-free day for those looking to socialize without the alcoholic after effects.

"Sean Porter opened Gramp's Garage Bar in January, which was a great time for people to have non-alcoholic drinks, so he asked us to do a non-alcoholic bar night, and we continue to do it," Styll said. "We are renting out Gramp's every Tuesday. Killjoy takes over, we have a completely non-alcoholic bar menu."

The partnership sees fun programming to go along with the non-alcoholic fun, like trivia or bingo.

"We just love getting people together in situations that are not centered around alcohol," Styll added.

Even in a city like Nashville, where drinking is woven into the night life, people are opting to choose booze alternatives.

Local comedian Will Abeles told News 2 drinking and performing "have gone hand in hand since day one." Starting out in the New England region, Abeles said the first forms of "payment" frequently included free beer or discounted cocktails. That held true in Music City, as well.

"In Nashville, getting yourself well on your way to blackout drunk is the only way to really enjoy any live performance in this town," he said. "As someone who dated a few beer snobs then became one myself, N/A options have helped me immensely; now that they actually know how to make them, I really enjoy them."

Abeles added it was "nice knowing I can have a few, do my show and not worry the next day if I tried to fight a cop after."

Over the last couple of years, Killjoy has also seen the fruits of that change in attitudes toward alcohol. Last year the business opened a full brick-and-mortar store in East Nashville.

"We started in basically a closet in Berry Hill," Styll told News 2. "The goal was always to get a good storefront, which we ended up getting in East Nashville about a year ago."

Now, the business is expanding back to its roots and opening a second location in Berry Hill.

"We love the East Nashville community, but we kept hearing from customers in South Nashville that they wished there was something for them," Styll told News 2.

With rent prices sky-high in Nashville, Styll said she found a place in Berry Hill that seemed to offer the "best of both worlds."

"We've got a beautiful little house. It's got a great vibe," Styll said.

Styll added she's happy to be able to offer alcohol alternatives to people who may opt out of imbibing.

"I think so many people are realizing that even if they themselves aren't drinking these things, it's a really good idea to have them on hand for your guests who may, for any reason, not want to drink alcohol," Styll told News 2. "I think a lot of people are catching onto the fact that this needs to be a part of your home bar."

An official opening date has not been announced for the Berry Hill shop, but Styll said she hopes to be able to get things up and running in October.

News Source : https://www.wkrn.com/news/local-news/middle-tn-neighborhood-news/killjoy-berry-hill-second-location/