Kesko CEO suggests spirits departments for supermarkets

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Matti Halmesmäki, President and CEO of the Kesko Group, proposes that grocery stores start selling wines and hard liquor. In an interview for Joensuu's Karjalainen daily, Halmesmäki states that separate spirits departments supervised by Alko, Finland's state-owned chain of liquor stores, could be set up in grocery stores and supermarkets.
      "From the points of view of efficiency and practicality for the customers, this would be the smartest solution", Halmesmäki argues.
     
Purchases from the alcohol department would be paid for at the check-out with the rest of the shopping. The shopkeeper would then pass on to Alko the proceeds from the liquor sales. In return, Alko would recompense the merchant for various expenses, such as management costs and staff wages.
      Halmesmäki considers his suggestion a compromise: for a very long time and so far without much success, the Finnish current consumer goods retail trade has been demanding the dismantling of Alko's retail monopoly on sales of wines in particular.
     
Alko CEO Jaakko Uotila refrained from directly responding - positively or negatively - to Halmesmäki's suggestion.
      "It would be a substantial change and might even require amendments to the law on alcohol retail", Uotila points out.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Supermarket price war causes beer sales to slump at Alko (1.3.2006)
  Retail organization calls on EU to dismantle Alko monopoly (3.2.2005)

Helsingin Sanomat