The Beer Store

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Brewers Retail Inc., doing business as The Beer Store, is a privately owned chain of retail outlets selling beer and other malt beverages in the province of Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1927 as Brewers Retail, it was owned at its inception by a consortium of Ontario-based brewers. It currently operates as a unique open retail and wholesale system primarily owned by three brewing companies: Molson, Labatt, and Sleeman, which are owned by multinational corporations. It is also partially owned (under 0.02%) by 30 Ontario-based brewers. Under the ownership model, all qualified brewers are free to list their products without discrimination and to set their own selling prices, subject to Liquor Control Board of Ontario (LCBO) price approval that must comply with legislated minimum and uniform pricing requirements. Under Ontario's Liquor Control Act, The Beer Store was formerly the only retailer permitted to sell beer for off-site consumption, other than stores on the site of a brewery, locations of the provincial government-owned LCBO, and LCBO-authorized agency stores in certain smaller communities. The act and the company's articles of incorporation further stipulate that Brewers Retail cannot sell "hard liquor" (spirits) or consumer goods (like groceries). Brewers Retail adopted the current name in 1985. Amendments made to the Liquor Control Act have since allowed for the sale of single and 6 packs of beer at select supermarkets in Ontario. That was done to enhance customer access and convenience. The Beer Store, however, continues to maintain pricing exclusivity in providing consumers discounts on larger packs of beer, along with retail partners, agency stores, combination stores and manufacturer outlets. What distinguishes the Beer Store is its characterization as a sort of "beer commons." A 2013 Angus Reid survey commissioned by the Ontario Convenience Stores Association found that only 13% of Ontario residents were aware that...