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If you want to sell a rare bottle of whiskey, how can you be sure you’re getting a fair price? That was the question a tech veteran and a bar owner teamed up to answer with their online marketplace, Unicorn.
Phil Mikhaylov, one-time head of global partnerships for Uber Eats, and bar owner Cody Modeer launched the site in 2020 so alcohol aficionados can buy and sell high-end spirits and wine for what they’re really worth.
A Spirits Startup Is Born
Mikhaylov got the idea for Unicorn while working with a whiskey lover whose collection was worth over $1 million. That made him wonder: How many other collectors have no idea how valuable their bottles are but would look for the answer through a reputable marketplace.
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Modeer was motivated as a bar owner who wanted a marketplace where high end alcohol could be bought and sold for fair prices.
Together, they created Unicorn, a web- and app-based auction/marketplace that also has a brick-and-mortar vault in Chicago with more than $100 million worth of bottles under management. The company also has 11 dropoff and pickup locations across the nation.
One key component to Unicorn is its authentication mechanisms. These include tech-enabled authentication, appraisal and digitization of every bottle. The company also has a database of more than 400,000 historical transactions and 1 million digital photos, making it possible to spot inconsistencies and ensure authenticity.
Unicorn’s more expensive bottles can range from $100 to $250,000, but the company also did more than 50,000 transactions last year that were under $100.
Some of the most expensive bottles that have sold on Unicorn include a bottle of Very Very Old Fitzgerald 18-year Blackhawk bourbon that sold for $80,000, a bottle of Buffalo Trace Old Fashioned Copper 1982 that sold for close to $123,000, and a bottle of Yamazaki 55-year Single Malt Japanese Whiskey that sold for more than $200,000.
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Buyers can partake in 1-3 weekly auctions with up to 6,000 listings worth $1 million to $2million and more than 65,000 bids. By contrast, Sotheby’s and Christie’s only hold auctions every month or two, and only for high-end bottles.
Unicorn says more than 100,000 customers have used the platform, generating more than 7 million bids and more than $150 million in sales, and that 60% to 70% of its customer base is Gen X, millennials and Gen Z.
The Global Spirits Marketplace
As digital marketplaces for big-ticket luxury items like designer handbags, sneakers, and automobiles took off, it was only a matter of time before entrepreneurs found similar opportunities in alcohol.
Younger generations with disposable income and an affinity for luxury goods have also inspired digital marketplaces where high-end and rare alcohol is bought by serious collectors and casual drinkers alike.
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The global luxury wine and spirits market is expected to grow from $274.1 billion in 2024 to around $438 billion in 2034, translating into a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.8% between 2025-2034, according to a report by Market.US, a market analyses firm in New York.
North America captured 31.4% of the global market share, about $84.9 billion, in 2024. The report also noted that luxury wines accounted for 56.1% of the 2024 luxury wine and spirits market in 2024, with online retail accounting for 36.3% of distribution.
Competition and Other Risks
Unicorn is not without its digital rivals in a very competitive space.
New York-based BAXUS describes itself as “the first peer-to-peer Marketplace for buying, selling, trading, and storing your valuable spirits & wine.” The company says that it uses blockchain technology “to give users proof of ownership, authentication, and a safe storage solution.”
Other digital marketplaces catering to the high-end wine and spirit aficionado include Winebid.com, Good Bottle Auctions, Whisekey.acition.com, Invaluable.com, Whiskey Auctioneer, and Whiskeytrades.com.
And because alcohol attracts more scrutiny from regulators than most other industries, digital marketplaces for wine and spirits need to navigate the complex rules that could affect their business.
Another risk is the decline in U.S. alcohol consumption. According to a 2023 Gallup poll, 54% of Americans reported drinking alcohol, down from 67% in 2017. That’s the lowest percentage of Americans who said they consumed alcohol since Gallup started tracking American drinking behavior in 1939.
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