'Back to business,' Restaurant & bar owners stock up as LCBO stores reopen

Restaurant and bar owners were among the first to arrive at LCBO stores once they reopened following unprecedented strike action on Tuesday.

George Gunness, owner of Cheers Bar and Grill in Barrie, said the past few weeks had been tough with LCBO employees on the picket lines.

"I am happy, less stress, back to business," he said.

Gunness noted that business was down roughly 20 per cent during the strike.

"I had enough stock before they closed to carry me through and then I was buying every day from all these small outlets to keep going," he explained.

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Roughly 10,000 Liquor Control Board of Ontario employees walked off the job on July 5 after talks between the Crown corporation and OPSEU broke down.

The contract, ratified over the weekend, included an eight per cent pay increase spread across three years, the transition of about 1,000 casual employees to permanent part-time roles, and assurance that no stores will close during the contract period.

With everything back to business, convenience store owners are preparing to focus on alcohol sales in the fall.

"It's a great opportunity for us as well," said Xinyang Xu, owner of Jeans Variety on Burton Avenue in Barrie.

Xu said being able to sell alcohol will help his business compete with chain stores. "We will need to clear a big space for the beers and wines, lots of work for us to do, lots to do in the next few weeks."

Eligible convenience stores in Ontario can start selling beer, wine and ready-to-drink alcoholic beverages in early September. Eligible grocery and big box stores will follow in November.