Ontario c-stores licensed to sell beverage alcohol surpass 5,000 mark
Since the category launched a year ago, Ontario c-stores have rapidly adopted beverage alcohol, with hundreds of thousands of orders shipped and thousands of locations now stocking it, according to new figures shared by the LCBO.
As of July 29, 2025, more than 5,000 Convenience Store Licenses (CSLs) are active across the province, up from 4,799 at the end of November 2024 and 4,220 as of Sept. 5, 2024, the launch day of the category—a nearly 18.5% increase in less than a year.
Order activity has surged alongside this expansion.
By July 29, c-stores had placed over 257,000 orders through the LCBO's Grocery Management System (GMS), totaling more than 11 million cases of beer, wine, cider and RTD cocktails. That represents a 314% increase in orders and a 307% increase in cases shipped compared with Dec. 2, 2024, when 62,000 orders and 2.7 million cases had been tallied.
“The LCBO is proud to support convenience stores and the role they play in communities across Ontario,” a representative from the retailer and wholesaler told CSNC.
C-store chains and independent retailers have largely reported strong sales of beverage alcohol, reflecting robust consumer demand.
To support this growth, the LCBO is also enhancing the B2B interface for returns and claims submissions and looking at ways to improve the ordering experience. The rollout of the improvements is expected later this year.
