In Ontario, C-Stores Allowed to Enter Alcohol Category

As of September 5, thousands of c-stores are now licensed to sell alcoholic beverages.

September 12, 2024

Just over 4,000 more convenience stores in Canada’s Ontario province are allowed to sell liquor and alcoholic beverages as of September 5. The latest expansion adds 4,187 stores to the province’s existing 3,000 retailers that were previously licensed to sell beer, cider, wine, and ready-to-drink alcoholic beverages, such as coolers, hard seltzer, or other premixed cocktails. Alcohol can be sold at convenience stores in the province between 7 a.m. and 11 p.m.

According to the Financial Post, “the expansion follows a long campaign by store owners and the Ontario Convenience Stores Association (OCSA) to broaden access beyond the Liquor Control Board of Ontario (LCBO) and Beer Store.”

According to Kenny Shim, president of the OCSA, which represents about 7,000 of the 10,000 corner stores across the province: “We’ve been waiting for this for a long time in Ontario. We’ve been advocating for it for over 20 years, gathering petitions to convince the government.”

According to the Financial Post, regulations stores need to meet to sell alcohol include:

Store owners and all staff involved in its sale, delivery, or orders must be at least 18 years old and complete an Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO)-approved training program.
Stores must be fully enclosed (no semi-enclosed mall retailers).
Stores must have less than 4,000 square feet of floor space, at least half of which is used to sell food products.
At least 20% of beer, cider, and ready-to-drink beverage containers on display must come from small breweries, cideries, distilleries, or wineries.
For wine, at least 10% must be produced by small vintners, and 40% made with grapes from a single country that meets quality assurance standards or from a country that produces less than 150 million liters of wine annually.

“It will take about a year to fully iron out the policies and regulations,” Shim told the Financial Post. “But we’re working closely with the AGCO and the government to ensure everything runs smoothly. This is a great opportunity for convenience stores, and I’m confident we’ll get there with time.”