N.S. private wine stores allowed to buy direct

The Nova Scotia government will allow privately-owned wine stores to source products directly from suppliers when their second five-year operating agreement starts up next year.

The province allowed private wine and specialty stores (PWSS) to start up under operating agreements with the Nova Scotia Liquor Corp. (NSLC) in 2003, and signed agreements with four businesses, all in the Halifax region.

The stores’ current operating agreements require them to source their product through NSLC by the case and at an agreed-upon discount price. The agreements also limit the products the private stores can sell to those that wouldn’t generally be made available through the NSLC’s own distribution chain. The private stores get exclusive rights to those wines for two years before NSLC can list them in its own stores.

According to a study this spring by Gardner-Pinfold, which recommended many of the changes to be made in the next five-year agreement, Nova Scotia’s domestic wineries have supported the PWSS program so far, saying it has increased consumer awareness and knowledge of wine varieties, labeling and, in particular, local wines.

The study noted many local wineries keep limited hours in winter and during the tourism “shoulder” seasons, so having private stores that can stock and display their product year-round has been a “significant” benefit to the wineries.

Also, during the regular tourist season, many tourists visiting the private wine stores “were not previously aware of the Nova Scotia wine industry,” the study noted.

NSLC Minister Len Goucher said in a release that once the new measures are in place, the province will re-assess the program again at the end of the new five-year term.

In the meantime, he said in a release, the province has no plans to change the provisions around single-owner, small business operation of these stores. The PWSS model blocks large retailers from taking part in the program and limits the number of stores any one operator can run.

Goucher also noted the province does “not believe it is prudent to expand the program beyond its current components.”

The Gardner-Pinfold report had recommended expanding the PWSS program, noting several areas of the province outside Halifax “that could be better serviced through the introduction of private wine stores.”

The NSLC operates 108 retail stores and also supplies 55 “agency” stores and 2,100 licensed vendors.