The Beer Store is closing five locations across Ontario next month.
In a statement, the Beer Store confirmed that locations in Corunna, Hearst and Erin, Ont., will close on April 27. The London, Ont., location on Adelaide Street and the Kitchener location on King Street will also close, the company confirmed.
“Like any retailer in today’s evolving marketplace for beverage alcohol, we are continually evaluating our business operations to ensure we’re meeting the needs of our customers and adapting to change,” said Ozzie Ahmed, the Beer Store’s vice president of retail.
John Nock, the president of UFCW Local 12R24, the union that represents Beer Store workers across the province, wrote in an email to the Star that the “price stability” that the Beer Store brings “will be at risk.”
“I anticipate this fall up to 100 more closures,” Nock said.
The closures were originally reported by BlogTO, Guelph Today and the Wellington Advertiser.
“The Beer Store is closely watching our retail stores and making decisions on what makes the most sense for how we operate as a business. Any decision we make considers our commitment to serving our customers,” Ahmed said.
The Beer Store did not immediately respond to an additional request regarding the number of jobs impacted by these closures, but Nock wrote that “most workers can go to other locations.”
In October, the Star reported that provincial estimates showed that the Beer Store’s percentage of Ontario’s alcohol market is expected to plunge to 15 per cent by 2026-27 from 41.1 per cent in 2024 as a result of expanded alcohol retailing.
The Beer Store began as a co-operative venture between local breweries in 1927, the same year prohibition ended in Ontario.
Today, it’s owned by Molson Coors, Labatt, who each control roughly 49 per cent, and Sleeman, which controls the remainder. At its peak, it sold 90 per cent of the beer consumed in Ontario.
With files from Josh Rubin
