Liquor store owners earn a wide range of salaries based on a plethora of variable factors, including – perhaps most notably – location, sales and overhead. As entrepreneurs, liquor store owners contend with inconsistent markets and constantly fluctuating economies. As such, it is difficult to peg the average salary of a liquor store owner. However, first-hand reports provide some insight into the salary situation.

Low End

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Location exerts a significant influence on the earnings of a liquor store owner. For instance, liquor store stores in Alabama had profits between $47,000 and $70,000 in 2011. At the mid-range, stores in states as diverse as California, Connecticut and Colorado saw sales of around $100,000 to $150,000 that same year.

High End

Liquor stores in locales such as the District of Columbia and Florida reported sales of $216,000 and $350,000, respectively. At the very high end, liquor stores in the Atlanta area, reported revenues of $3,000,000 for 2005, or about $3,479,953 adjusted for 2011 inflation rates. Similarly, the municipal liquor store in Northfield, Minnesota, saw sales of $2,780,000 in 2009.

Statistics

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Starting around 2008, America's economic recession had a positive effect on liquor store sales, in turn having a positive effect on the pocketbooks of owners. For instance, the Ohio Department of Commerce's Division of Liquor Control reported an increase in sales of 4.75 percent – a total of $32.6 million – between 2007 and 2008. Likewise, the Brown-Forman wine company – one of the largest in America – saw a 78 percent increase in wine case distribution for the state of Michigan alone in 2008.

Expenses

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Sales aren't the end-all of a liquor store owner's salary. Before an owner pockets his salary, he must pay for the expenses of the store. Common expenses include rent, inventory, employee salaries, liquor licenses and marketing. Municipal liquor stores must turn over a portion of their earnings to their home cities. For instance, of the $2,780,000 earned by Northfield's municipal liquor store in 2008, $131,280 went to the state.