Beer and wine coming to local corner stores
Convenience stores in Trent Hills say they plan to join the rush to sell alcohol in September
Most convenience stores in Trent Hills plan to start selling beer and wine just after the Labour Day weekend under revised rules announced last Friday by Premier Doug Ford.
Circle K said its Campbellford store and all others in Ontario will add those products as soon as possible. Shaun Zhang said the Hastings Convenience Store will also sell alcohol, but knows he needs to get a special licence. Scott’s Variety in Warkworth also plans to take advantage of the new opportunity.
And Mike Sharpe said Sharpe’s Food Market is reviewing the situation given the sudden change in the rules. It hasn’t sold alcohol products in the past.
The scramble to understand the new regulations and assess the business opportunities is driven by Premier Doug Ford’s sudden decision to pay at least $225 million – the opposition and some industry experts say the cost could actually be $1 billion – to get the Beer Store Inc., which is owned by multinational beer giants, to agree to revise a 10-year contract that runs until 2026.
Last December, Ford announced that when that contract ended, he would open the market up to convenience stores and liberalize other rules.
Why the expensive rush? What’s changed since then?
The Toronto Star reports that Queen’s Park observers say Ford wants to have beer in corner stores, something he promised in 2018 and 2022, before the next provincial election. And he’s decided he wants to hold that election early, either this fall or next spring, instead of the mandated June 2026.
His political calculus is that he’s better to hold the election before new Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie gets too settled in and before Pierre Poilievre becomes prime minister and introduces a tough budget that slashes spending. A federal election must be held by Oct. 20, 2025.
Under Ontario’s election law, a premier does not have to abide by the fixed date every four years.
On May 24 Ford announced that by the end of October this year, every convenience, grocery and big-box store in Ontario will be able to sell beer, cider, wine and ready-to-drink alcoholic beverages.
After September 5, all eligible convenience stores will be able to sell beer, cider, wine and ready-to-drink alcoholic beverages.
The Progressive Conservative government says the new deal will give Ontarians up to 8,500 more places to buy booze – ending the Beer Store’s dominance over beer sales, which dates back a century to the end of Prohibition.
The Beer Store is controlled by global beer giants Molson Coors and Anheuser-Busch InBev. The government money will go toward covering wages and other costs to keep a minimum number of Beer Store locations open, as the chain is a key part of the province’s recycling system.
The Beer Store, which now has 422 outlets, must keep at least 386 open until July 2025, and at least 300 running until the end of that year. The stores will continue to handle beverage recycling, but the company and the province will have to renegotiate that deal.