our story
Giving Back to the Community
OUR MISSION
Provide a top-quality retail liquor operation for our community
Offer the finest professional service and selection available
Control the sale of our products to responsible adults
Be as profitable as possible for the purpose of “Giving Back to the Community”
apple valley liquor
rick heyne
Rick Heyne has been in retail liquor management for over 40 years. He has been Liquor Operations Director for Apple Valley for over 7 years and has worked for the city for a total of 18 years. Before coming to Apple Valley, Rick was the GM and co-owner of South Lyndale Liquors in Minneapolis where he began his career in 1985. He takes a lot of pride in his job knowing that the hard work he and his staff does goes right back into the community, providing Apple Valley residents with enhanced emergency response services and access to park & recreation programs and activities. When he is not serving the City of Apple Valley, Rick enjoys spending time with his wife and adult children, musical performances, and golf. His furry family is an important part of his life also. He keeps busy with his horse, dog, and two cats.
Meet Our management
Team
Steve Schuft wears two hats for the Liquor Department. He has been the Assistant Operations Director for 6 years and has also served as Store Manager at Store #1 since 2012. Steve has been in the liquor industry since 2001 and brings more than two decades of experience to his leadership role.
The highlight of his career with the city is the people and culture he experiences every day, including the team he works with and the community he serves. His goal each day is to share the respect, appreciation, and values he receives as a city employee with both his staff and customers.
Steve takes pride in the success he and his team have achieved, knowing that the department’s success directly benefits the Apple Valley community by returning profits back to the city.
Bobby Bloch serves as the Liquor Store Manager for the City of Apple Valley. He oversees operations at Apple Valley Liquor Store #2 and has been in that role since October 2023. With 28 years of dedicated experience in customer service and a decade of proven leadership as a liquor manager, Bobby brings a wealth of expertise and passion to his role. He centers his management philosophy on delivering exceptional, friendly service and keeping the store clean, organized and easy to shop. As a true neighborhood manager, Bobby strategically curates the store’s inventory to directly align with the preferences of local customers, maximizing the facility’s square footage to offer the finest selection available. Through his leadership, Store #2 remains committed to responsible product sales and the municipal mission of giving back to the Apple Valley community.
Benjamin Dockter Is the Liquor Store Manager at location #3 for the City of Apple Valley and has been with the Liquor Operations team since 2020. He brings 20+ years of experience in the liquor industry, 30+ years of leadership to the city and has strong background ties to the food and beverage industry while holding a Culinary Arts degree. His mission for the store is to provide trending and unique products while offering the staples customers are looking for in a clean and friendly retail environment. He believes in an old school customer service approach that helps build customer connections and strengthen community trust. His goal every day is to maximize the potential of the store to effectively support “Giving Back to the Community”.
Cam Kennedy started working at Liquor Store #1 in 2020 and has worked his way to the Assistant Manager position over the past few years. Cam’s responsibilities include purchasing all of the Beer, Seltzers, and THC Products in the store. He has had the opportunity to work under all three of the current Apple Valley Liquor Store Managers and has accumulated an abundance of knowledge over the years. He has also worked at a local brewery, Ineffable Brewing in Burnsville, since 2022 and has learned about the service and brewing sides of the industry. When Cam isn’t at work, he enjoys reading, going to concerts, and exploring the Twin Cities with his fiancée.
Noel Nichols is the Wine Specialist for the City of Apple Valley municipal liquor system, as well as an Assistant Manager at Store #3. His career in wine, working at both fine restaurants and on the retail side, spans over 35 years, and includes the titles of Bartender, in Lakeside, MT and in Minneapolis; Server, at various fine dining restaurants, from Rome, GA, to the Twin Cities; Wine Consultant, at Surdyk’s in Minneapolis; and international award-winning Sommelier in Seoul, South Korea. He has travelled extensively throughout the United States; lived overseas for 12 years; enjoyed time drinking local beer, wine, and spirits on 5 continents; and been an amateur brewmaster, winemaker, and distiller, himself. He lives in Apple Valley with his wife and two sons, and he likes nothing more than sitting in a strange, frozen arena in outstate Minnesota watching his boys compete in hockey.
Eion Foote is the Assistant Manager and beer buyer at Store #3. He had 13 years of experience in logistics management with Target Corporation, before starting at Apple Valley Liquor in 2011.
As beer buyer and assistant manager, he oversees product selection, inventory management, vendor relationships and daily operations. He has been in his current role at Store #3 since 2019.
Passionate about the ever-evolving beverage industry, his focus is on discovering and championing the latest trends, while staying customer focused and engaged.
income generation for the community
effective means of control
While the responsibility for municipal liquor sales is to promote moderation and control in the sale and use of alcoholic beverages, the municipal operation is also very profitable and generates income for the community. Apple Valley’s City Council Resolution 1990-67 states that profits from the liquor stores shall be designated to help support Apple Valley’s Parks and Recreation Department, Police Department, and Fire Department as annually allocated from the general fund of the city. Without the help from our Liquor Operations, these expenses would be the responsibility of the residents in the form of increased property taxes, thus one of the primary reasons that the City of Apple Valley has one of the lowest tax capacity rates in Dakota County. Since 1998, the liquor stores have transferred over $14M back to the community.
In the liquor business since 1970, the City of Apple Valley currently operates three convenient liquor store locations as an effective means to control the sale and consumption of alcoholic beverages in compliance with federal and state laws. Gross sales for all three locations exceed $10 million annually. Our purpose is to provide a quality liquor establishment for our community by offering the finest professional service and selection in a profitable manner, and to continue controlling the sale of our products to responsible adults 21 years of age or older.