Quote:
Originally Posted by Innsertnamehere
Unlike Ontario where liqour is priced at the dollar amount the LCBO sets in every store, prices are store dependent like a more regular good, so you have to go to the right store. Buying wine from a grocery store isn't going to save much over Ontario - but Costco can have decent wines on for a fraction of the cost in Ontario pretty easily. I've seen $20 bottles in Ontario go for $8 USD at Costco.
|
I'm sure it varies a lot by state, but we bought most of the wine for our wedding at Costco in suburban New Orleans. It was not cheaper than the LCBO for the quality they were selling which is something we were very surprised at. I remember cross-referencing stuff with the LCBO app and finding that pricing differences were all over the place. The only other state I've been to Costco in is Hawaii, which was definitely more expensive but that was expected! I'm sure others are indeed cheaper for the products they choose to stock.
I'm most familiar with beer since I have friends in the industry (who distribute to the US) and the system there is actually more complicated that Ontario and much of Canada. While individual stores do have more freedom to price product, they are generally reliant on one or two (if they're lucky) massive distributors that set the wholesale price. Deals on large purchases of macro beers are relatively common, but when it comes to craft it's a different story. Margins are already very low and adding that middle-man adds cost. IIRC in some areas local brewers can deal directly with bars/retailers which helps for those products, but this is not allowed everywhere. There's a lot of pressure to buy certain products from the distributor.
In Ontario brewers can deal directly with bars which now includes independent bottleshops, even if a third-party does the delivery. LCBO sales have to go through different QC and price is regulated. This is also part of why craft brewers in the US got hit much harder during COVID as they deal exclusively with third-party distributors.
No moral to this story other than alcohol regulation/distribution is annoying everywhere in North America.
Threaded Mode