Now that beer and other select alcoholic beverages will be sold in corner stores across Ontario starting this summer, there is mass speculation that the Beer Store could become a thing of the past.

Premier Doug Ford has been promising since the early days of the program that he will work with the ale retailer throughout this new expansion of the presently narrow market, but experts still don't see the Beer Store lasting much longer.

Insider sources said months ago that the impending end of the long-term Master Framework Agreement (MFA) that has essentially ensured a Beer Store monopoly will likely spell the end of the chain, which is largely owned by breweries Molson, Labatt and Sleeman (plus a handful of local brewers who have a smaller stake).

Rumours swirl that Beer Store's monopoly in Ontario may be ending👀 https://t.co/k35yXLhGnk #Toronto #Ontario #TheBeerStore

— blogTO (@blogTO) November 14, 2023

Meanwhile, the Beer Store has been downsizing and selling off some properties in recent years.

This is in line with the government's mandate that it keep a smaller number of stores open as time goes on. The new agreement to bring boozy drinks to more outlets earlier than the natural 2026 end of the MFA includes terms that at least 386 of the Beer Store's 440 locations remain open until July 1, 2025.

This number falls to at least 300 stores until the end of 2025. Following that, there is no minimum figure, meaning the Beer Store could bow out if it decided to — and experts are saying it will.

As one beer author and educator told the Star today, there would simply be "no reason for it to exist in a world where there are 8,500 other locations to buy beer." Another said they expect the end of the Beer Store as a "retail entity" by 2026.

The Beer Store seems to be telling news outlets the opposite this week, though, saying it intends to ramp up distribution — including to its new competitors — and to "adapt and thrive."

Per the Province's announcement last Friday, all convenience stores, supermarkets and big-box stores will be able to offer beer, wine, cider and ready-to-drink cans such as coolers if they want to by October 2026. Some will be doing so as early as August of this year as the program kicks off earlier than initially planned.