this post was submitted on 12 Mar 2025
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Just fyi, there isnt just one liquor monopoly. Not sure about other provinces, but BC has BC Liquor and Quebec has SAQ. I guess LCBO is Ontario's.
Ontario has he LCBO which is government owned and The Beer Store which is privately owned by Molsom-Coors, Labatt and Sleemans. There’s also some grocery stores that can sell some kinds of alcohol, but I think the rule is is that they need to be a certain distance away from an LCBO or Beer Store. This is mostly for rural areas I think?
There are no location requirements for selling alcohol as a grocery store, you have to have a certain percentage of your store selling groceries though. And those grocery stores have to buy through the LCBO.
Over the last few months nearly every gas station or corner store also carries alcohol in Ontario. Doug Ford spent millions of dollars to rush shelving the products so he could undermine the efforts of the LCBO workers strike. He also rushed along an app so you can find booze near you.
Yeah alright, wasn’t sure about that bit. In Nova Scotia, grocery stores and convenience stores can sell booze now, but they have to be a certain distance away from an NSLC, so we have some stores dotted around now selling booze. It’s been a while since I lived in Ontario and I left before the grocery store thing. Point being though, there’s ye olde Beer Store to go along with the LCBO and now there’s the other stores too. Did they ever get buck a beer though? I recall that being a very Important Issue when I left Ontario.
To add on to this chain, in Quebec you get cheap beer at the mom and pop depanneurs, and good wine at the SAQ. And you don't want to confuse the later with the SAAQ or the SQDC.
Tons of dépanneurs also sell craft beers though!