Coquitlam grocery shoppers may soon have another store where they can grab their food and a bottle of wine — in one place.
Monday, the city’s council-in-committee heard from Steve Moriarty, who created and is responsible for the liquor departments in Save On Foods, which is moving its north Coquitlam business from Pinetree Village to Sunwood Square in the building formerly occupied by Safeway.
Moriarty said Save On Foods hopes to open its new doors in early fall, once it’s given the OK to have wine in aisles; a rezoning application will come before council later this year.
Moriarty said the Coquitlam liquor selection and department layout will be similar to Save On Foods’ east Maple Ridge location; there, the wine is close to the front of the store.
And the grocer will offer “the world’s largest selection of B.C. wines” with more than 1,300 products including fruit wines, sake and mead. “More than 50% of the wine that we sell is not sold outside of the wineries.”
Moriarty also told council that Save On Foods has top security on site, and has not run into any infractions in its stores with alcohol, since it started selling booze six years ago.
Currently, Save On Foods has 21 stores with a liquor department, with the average wine costing $16.50.
Save On Foods also has a letter of support from Miles Prodan, the president and CEO of Wine Growers BC, who describes the economic spinoffs that provincial wines that create.
Moriarty also told the committee that Save On Foods’ operations are “negligible” on nearby private and government liquor stores, and some Save On Foods’ stores share a common wall with competitors like in White Rock and Langley.
He described the new Save On Foods store at Sunwood Square as a “modern” and “unique” location that will be a destination for shoppers. It will also have environmentally friendly initiatives for recycling products as well as international foods.
Currently, the only grocery store in Coquitlam that also has liquor on site is Safeway in Burquitlam.
