Tuesday, February 01, 2005

Private BC liquor stores.

So now after the public said they don't want them, Gordon Campbell's BC Liberals are setting them up left and right. Your neighborhood could have one soon. Liquor stores are huge profit makers, the people of BC get the direct benefit of this largess. 3.1 BILLION in profits! AND 1.5 billion in sales and excise taxes. So why would anyone want to change it?
Aside from the emotional arguments about privatization of the sale of liquor in British Columbia, and the arguement recently introduced about organized crime becoming involved, and the fact that liquor prices went way higher in Alberta after privatization, and the fact that the employee in a BC liquor store has nothing to lose by refusing to sell a minor a case of beer and the private guy doesn't want to lose the sale, er ... well ok I am getting carried away. But let's look at the profit arguement only.
Say a bottle of Scotch costs $5 and the BC Government Store sells it for $10. Leaving $5 gross profit to play with. After deducting all operating costs, part of which are minimized because of central distribution and management, let's say we have $1 left in NET profit. That dollar goes to the people of BC through the government. WE get 3.1 billion of those each year!
So in a private operation, lets assume the same costs of that bottle of Scotch. $5. (quit drooling this is THEORETICAL!) Now that private liquor store operator has to import it himself, HUGE higher costs. But he counteracts that by paying minimum wages to his employees ... lower labour costs. (Some say at the expense of knowledgeable employees.) So let's just say the private operator ALSO comes out with $1 in net profit. Hmm good for him. If we could assume the same gross sales from private entrepreneurs, that means the 3.1 billions in profit goes wherever those liquor store owners want to spend it. Yes, WE as the people of BC still get the 1.5 billion in taxes, but we LOSE 3.1 BILLION DOLLARS!
Back to the above question; So why would anyone want to change it?
Why would Gordon Campbell want to take dollars away from the people of BC?

Again.


$10 Scotch? Where?


1 comment:

  1. Anonymous10:33 am

    Very simple.
    Gordon Campbell hates B.C.ers
    He must be getting a kickback from someone.

    ReplyDelete

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