HYMERS, Ont. — Rural convenience stores just outside Thunder Bay say they don't regret the decision to stock their shelves with beer and wine when the province allowed them to sell booze a few years ago.
Krista Silvaggio, who operates Hymer's Green Acre Variety, said while her store doesn't make a fortune on alcohol sales per se, customers are happy to be able to pick up their favourite tipple along with their milk and bread — and that, she says, helps overall sales.
"It's one less stop for them to make," Silvaggio said on Thursday. "It's a good thing, because we are getting the [customer] traffic. We don't want to hear crickets in the parking lot."
It's a similar story at Neebing's AJ's Trading Post on Highway 61, which has contained a satellite LCBO outlet since about 2020.
"People like to pick something up on their way to camp," operator Cheryl Muller said. "We've been trying to [become an outlet] for quite a while."
Muller's business is just a 20-minute drive from the U.S. border. During summer, American tourists are happy to be able to buy alcohol at a convenience store, just like they can in their home country, she said.
Picking up a case of ale or a bottle of merlot at corner and grocery stores is slated to become more common in Ontario following Thursday's announcement by the province to add up to 8,500 retail outlets that can sell booze beginning in January of 2026.
In a news release, the province said the move "is the largest expansion of consumer choice and convenience since the end of prohibition almost 100 years ago."
"There's no reason why Ontario consumers shouldn't enjoy the same convenient shopping experience as Canadians in every other province when buying some wine for their holiday party or a case of beer or seltzers on their way to the cottage," Premier Doug Ford, who is a non-drinker, said in the release.
Strong liquor like gin and whisky will continue to be sold in LCBO outlets, the province said.
Silvaggio said apart from the extra paperwork, there haven't been any major downsides to selling booze at her store. She's had to refuse service to a few customers who appeared intoxicated, "but most people have been understanding," she said.
There doesn't seem to be any doubt nowadays that customers who shop at convenience stores expect to be able to pick up some alcohol at the same time.
"We get asked all the time," said Ella Chioda, a supervisor at Dawson General on the edge of Thunder Bay on Dawson Road.
Chioda said her store hasn't been able to receive a permit to sell alcohol because it's considered too close to the city and therefore not in an under-serviced area.
A staffer at Crystal Beach Variety on Shuniah's Lakeshore Drive said alcohol sales have become a significant part of the store's operation.
Meanwhile, in the provincial news release, the province said a master framework agreement between the government and the Beer Store "that limited the number of retail stores that could be authorized to sell alcohol" won't be renewed when it expires at the end of 2025.
Ontario's NDP warned in a separate news release that decision could impact "thousands" of unionized jobs across the province if Beer Store sales decline as a result.
"Ford has a pattern of not listening to anyone except for wealthy insiders when he makes decisions, and workers always seem to be an afterthought," the NDP said in its news release.
Chronicle-Journal/Local Journalism Initiative
