Last week, the BC government formally announced its changes to our liquor laws, touting them as good for consumers and small businesses alike. This was the headline on the press release, in fact: “Latest liquor changes good for consumers, small businesses.”
Indeed, some of these changes seem a’ight. BC Liquor Stores are extending their hours of operation during the week and will now be open on weekends (wahoo!). These stores will be able to sell cold beer and wine, which is actually a huge advancement and brings British Columbia squarely into the modern age of 1960.
The biggest news would appear to be the store-within-a-store model for grocery stores that will take effect on April 1, which is actually the perfect day because the whole thing is kind of a joke.
This model ensures that there will technically be a one-stop shop for alcohol and groceries, since the booze will be available under the same roof as the bananas. In truth, it will remain a two-stop-shop, since the model requires a designated area and checkout (read: another line) for alcohol. The system is designed to “ensure continued restricted access to alcohol by minors,” though why a separate check-out is necessary for this is unclear and seems like a cumbersome and needless process.
Granted, figuring out how to sell alcohol at grocery stores would have been a very complex process. How, for example, would the companies deal with underage employees walking through the aisles with booze? Would they have to sell it behind the counter like they do cigarettes? It’s a byzantine process, so maybe this isn’t the worst possible solution.
But this is not, in fact, the biggest issue here. A new wholesale pricing model for wine and spirits has been announced, as well as a new volume-based wholesale pricing model for beer, with a graduated mark-up system, “allowing small- and medium-sized breweries to grow their product lines and create jobs.”
So while this will may benefit the 94 (!!!) breweries in BC, it ultimately means BCL stores will likely start selling beer at exactly the same price as private liquor stores.
Which means a new era for consumers buying beer. Right now, government liquor stores sell beer warm as piss, but at a lower cost, while private stores sell beer cold-and-ready (with often far better selections) but at a premium.
The new plan is meant to “level the playing field” between government and private liquor stores, which have been implemented to “[address] the calls of consumers.” But what we’re going to see with the graduated mark-up system is now, beer, wine and spirits prices will be priced at competitive rates at all stores. This will most likely mean increased beer prices at BC liquor stores.
I reached out to Ken Beattie at the BC Craft Beer Guild, but he declined to comment because it’s still too early to tell just how this will affect consumers, since the criteria surrounding the markups hasn’t been announced yet.
But by creating an environment where grocery stores and government liquor stores are competing with small liquor stores and specialty wine shops – who now have to purchase their alcohol at the same the cost as their bigger competitors – it tilts that playing field unfairly, rather than leveling it.
John Clerides, owner of Marquis Wine Cellars, told the Tyee this week: "What is ‘level' about what they've done? [...] The regulator, the wholesaler and the retailer – the Liquor Distribution Branch – are making the rules under which you're competing!"
In the press release, Attorny General Suzanne Anton doesn't even bother spinning the story – or, rather, she spins it so lazily nothing actually moves. She says, "It is our expectation that, starting April 2015, these changes will create a more competitive market for retailers."
"Competitive". No shit!
All this to say, little of this sounds promising. Bottom line: Stock up on (relatively) cheap beer while you can.
