Is booze the new toilet paper?
In a flashback to the TP-hoarding early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, shoppers are stocking up on wine and beer at grocery stores during the first strike in LCBO history, leaving some bare spots on the shelves.
The root cause? A combination of consumer panic and the LCBO’s insistence that stores only place large-scale orders during the strike by 9,000 workers, say experts.
“For sure, there’s some panic buying,” said retail analyst Lisa Hutcheson, managing partner of retail consultancy J.C. Williams Group.
Michelle Wasylyshen, a spokesperson for the Retail Council of Canada, acknowledged that there was some extra buying by shoppers, but expressed confidence that grocers would be able to restock the shelves.
“We are definitely seeing higher demand in some places,” said Wasylyshen, adding that the shelves weren’t universally wiped clean.
“Some stores have less product than others. It really depends on the location. But we expect that shelves will be replenished in short order,” Wasylyshen said.
At one Loblaws store in Markham earlier this week, there were just a handful of bottles of wine available for sale, with the shelves mostly bare.
At another store in Leaside Thursday, there were also scores of empty shelves where wine would normally be. There was also the shelf-stocking equivalent of a comb-over: Ontario wines replacing the spots usually taken up by imports.
At the Leaside store, two bottles of Wayne Gretzky Merlot took up the spot where rows of Masi Campofiorin Ripasso from Italy would normally be. Instead of Robert Mondavi Cabernet Sauvignon? Merlot, from Niagara’s Open winery.
At a Longo’s store in Leaside, most of the wine shelves were well-stocked, but the spots reserved for some popular imports — such as Prosecco dei Poeti — were down to a single bottle.
At another Longo’s in Liberty Village Wednesday, the shelves were reasonably full, but there were still a few empty spots.
Loblaws spokesperson Dave Bauer said there haven’t been any supply chain issues, but acknowledged customers are buying more than what they usually would.
“Other than occasional demand challenges we have not faced significant supply issues,” said Bauer. “We’re just seeing more demand and an increase of purchases at our stores.”
A spokesperson for Metro declined to comment. A spokesperson for Sobeys didn’t respond to a request for comment. Loblaws, Metro and Sobeys are members of the Retail Council of Canada, as is the LCBO.
The situation is getting even more dire at smaller, independent grocery stores, said Gary Sands, vice-president of the Canadian Federation of Independent Grocers.
That’s because of the LCBO’s insistence that grocery stores must buy a minimum of a pallet of anything they’re ordering wholesale during the strike.
“Stuff’s running out. And ordering by the pallet just isn’t an option for our members. They just don’t have that kind of room. And it’s expensive,” said Sands, explaining that a pallet can carry up to 720 bottles of wine.
And empty shelves create more panic buying, Sands said.
“People are buying more. And the more they see empty shelves, the more panicked they get,” Sands said.
As for why the shelves emptied in the first place, according to Hutcheson? The panic purchases, combined with retailers erring on the side of financial caution before the strike started.
“If they stocked up in advance and then there was a settlement at 11:59, they’d be stuck with it. That’s extra space and money,” said Hutcheson.
The LCBO told the Star “We continue to accept and fulfill grocery and LCBO Convenience Outlets. Our selection of inventory ebbs and flows as we continue to navigate products in and out of our warehouses and depots, and we appreciate our customers understanding in selecting alternate products if required. ”
The Ontario Public Service Employees Union, which represents the striking LCBO workers, didn’t respond by the Star’s deadline.
