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Canadian retail giant The Beer Store may be inching towards a truce with the province after its owners were caught illegally snapping up Premier Kathleen Wynne’s cottage in an undisclosed deal.
The store is owned by the Molson Coors Brewing Co., Labatt Brewing Co. and the Sleeman Breweries, who together run the 646-store chain.
The province wanted to change the way the outlets operated, and the three owners had earlier refused to even meet with officials from the Department of Liquor Control and Licensing about the plans. The pot strike at the Ontario brewery and supply issues in Quebec also further fueled the fight, but the deal reached Thursday night is apparently a substantial one.
Sue Mercer, spokesperson for the Liberal government, said in a statement that: “The two companies will immediately join together to implement these new terms with the hope of reaching a similar agreement on each of the other, smaller liquor stores.”
Nothing is yet final, Mercer added, but this appears to be a significant breakthrough.
“It appears to be a very sensible structure for the government to buy a part of these players. It would also solve some of the concerns we have had with each of the owners,” Vince Power, mayor of Hamilton, Ontario, told CBC News.
“That being said, there’s no vote, so there’s no reality of getting it passed tomorrow. There’s just some good will working here that, hopefully, we can move forward.”
Crazy lucky us! And may the Garden of Omens be with you!