In a dramatic shift poised to reshape Ontario’s alcohol retail landscape, The Beer Store has unveiled plans to shutter nearly one-third of its locations by summer 2025. This significant contraction—affecting 71 stores across the province—comes as the retailer navigates the aftermath of a landmark policy shift that has ended its long-standing monopoly on beer sales in Ontario.
The announcement, confirmed Thursday by Beer Store president Roy Benin, marks a strategic realignment as the company confronts new market realities. “These decisions are never taken lightly,” Benin stated in a release that emphasized the company’s focus on “operational efficiency while continuing to provide convenient service to Ontario consumers and brewers.”
This restructuring follows the provincial government’s overhaul of alcohol retail regulations earlier this year, which expanded beer and wine sales to convenience stores and grocers across Ontario. The policy change, implemented in September, effectively dismantled The Beer Store’s protected position in the market—a position it had maintained through a controversial agreement with the province signed in 2015.
The closures will impact communities both large and small, with locations set to disappear from metropolitan centers like Toronto, Ottawa, and London, alongside smaller municipalities such as Hanover, Tilbury, and Chapleau. For Ontario’s political landscape, this represents a significant reshaping of a system that has been entrenched for generations.
Industry analysts monitoring Canada’s retail sector note that The Beer Store had little choice but to adapt its footprint. “With convenience stores now selling the same products, maintaining the same physical presence simply doesn’t make business sense,” explained retail analyst Marvin Thompson. “They’re streamlining operations to remain competitive in what has suddenly become a much more crowded marketplace.”
The Beer Store, owned primarily by major brewers Molson Coors, Labatt, and Sleeman, has operated as a cooperative distribution system since Prohibition ended in Ontario in 1927. This restructuring represents perhaps the most significant change in the company’s nearly century-long history.
For consumers, the impact will be mixed. While some communities will lose convenient access to bottle return services and the wider selection The Beer Store typically offers compared to convenience outlets, the overall availability of beer products is expected to increase through the expanded retail network.
The United Food and Commercial Workers union, which represents Beer Store employees, has expressed concern about potential job losses. “We’re working closely with The Beer Store to minimize impacts through retirement incentives and placement opportunities at remaining locations,” said UFCW spokesperson Jennifer Collins.
Meanwhile, the business community is watching closely as this restructuring unfolds. The Beer Store’s retreat creates both opportunity and uncertainty in Ontario’s retail market, with commercial real estate experts already speculating about what businesses might fill the soon-to-be-vacant properties.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford has championed the liberalization of alcohol sales as a consumer-friendly initiative, though critics question whether the fragmentation of the market will ultimately lead to higher prices as The Beer Store loses economies of scale.
As this transition unfolds over the coming months, a fundamental question emerges for Ontario consumers and policymakers alike: Will the dismantling of this nearly century-old retail system ultimately deliver the convenience and competition promised, or will unintended consequences emerge as this provincial institution recedes from Ontario’s retail landscape?
