Gilmour’s meats, Godfrey General store ramping up to meet summer demand

Feb 19, 2020

Ontario shifts gears on alcohol sales, but not supply

There has been talk about ‘beer in the corner store’ in Ontario for many years, and change has come incrementally, over time.

Last summer, the province announced a Request for Proposal (RFP) process in 200 communities across the province for ‘convenience store’ outlets. The process got underway in late September, and it was a quick one in government terms.

By early January, two new outlets were opened on Road 38, Gilmour’s Meats in Harrowsmith and the Godfrey General Store, and one on Perth Road, Glenburnie Grocery.

For Jordan and Nick Gilmour of Gilmour’s Meats, the whole process has been a blur. Not only were they interested in expanding their range of products to include beer, wine, and spirits, but they also realised they needed more space.

“We didn’t want to get into it without making sure we had enough space and product to make it worthwhile for people to shop here,” said Jordan Gilmour.

In order to accommodate added retail space, and a large walk-in cooler for beer, Gilmour’s has had to expand. The walk-in cooler is not in place yet, but the space is now ready for it.

“Our landlord, who has been great to work with, took care of the exterior and we are doing the finishing,” he said.

By adding on, the butcher shop, take out kitchen, and grocery sections of the store have not been affected.

“It has added some business already, helping our winter sales, but we will need to be ready when summer comes,” he said. “All of our staff have had to be trained for this. It is a lot to get everyone up to speed. It’s a good thing it happened in January instead of the end of May.”

Laurie Love of the Godfrey General Store feels the same way. She was informed about the RFP in late September and it has been a lot of work putting the application together. As well, she had to determine how to integrate the post office, gas bar, and grocery and convenience stores operation with the alcohol sales.

“I am not complaining, however, since it is an opportunity,” she said.

The Godfrey General Store will also be installing a beer fridge at the back of the store later this spring and will be preparing for the increased traffic in the store during the already busy summer season.

The two privately owned Liquor Control Board of Ontario outlets in Frontenac County Northway Home Hardware on Perth Road in Inverary, and Reid’s Foodland in Verona, are facing an adjustment as the new stores come on stream. (there are also three LCBO corporate owned stores in Frontenac County – Sydenham, Sharbot Lake and Plevna)

Clint Reid said that while he, like any other retailer, does not relish the prospect of decreased sales, he wishes the new businesses well. He did say that he was troubled with the process that was used, since it was handled by a consulting firm that looked primarily at maps to determine which communities were underserved, rather than visiting the communities to see what was really there.

The Verona Foodland opened its agency store in 2004, when the business was owned by Graham Brooks. Clint and Andrea Reid took over the store almost exactly 10 years ago. The liquor store has been an important part of their business, not only in terms of offering the breadth of products that their customers expect, but also as a community trust.

“We live in this community, so we make sure that our staff are trained to the highest degree possible, when it comes to selling alcohol. We don’t control what happens once the product leaves the store, but we take our responsibility very seriously,” he said.

While the availability of alcohol in Ontario was opened up incrementally by the Liberal governments of the past 15 years, and more quickly by the current Conservative government, it is still a closed market when it comes to the supply chain. with the LCBO maintaining control over product selection and pricing.

While LCBO corporate stores in Frontenac County continue to open at 10am, the agency stores can open as early as 9am and stay open until as late as 11pm.