agency store

As Hampton’s Main Street NB Liquor store is set to close this fall, the Crown corporation has awarded an agency store to take its place.

Hampton-Fundy-St. Martins MLA John Herron first shared the news in a social media post on Monday.

The store was awarded to Moncton company Power Plus Technology Inc., owned by Jason Lutes, who already runs three other agency stores in the province, located in Moncton, Fredericton, and Cape Pele.

Radio-Canada first reported the closure of Hampton’s store in mid-April, and also reported the closure of another NB Liquor store in the Village of Beresford.

According to a statement by NB Liquor spokesperson Angela Bosse, the corporation decided to convert the service provided in Hampton from a corporate store to an agency store, following a review process prompted by Hampton’s store lease expiring soon.

RELATED: ANBL corporate stores to close in Hampton and Beresford

Bosse said ANBL considered factors such as sales data, the status of the lease, and ongoing operating costs when making its decision. She said those factors indicated that “a convenience agent partner is the right decision for this community at this time.”

The Crown corporation then launched a public tender in May to obtain Requests for Proposals (RFP) from candidates looking to be awarded the store, which was open until June.

Bosse said the process was impartial, with all candidates required to meet the mandatory criteria outlined in the RFP.

Proposals were then scored against a range of evaluation criteria, including traffic visibility, the mix of amenities offered, hours of operation, storage capacity, and previous business and retail experience, among other factors, she added.

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Herron said in the post that the store appears to offer a good selection and expanded hours.

However, he was critical of NB Liquor’s attempts to engage with the community and consult with the Town of Hampton during its selection process.

Herron believes NB Liquor “excessively restricted” the catchment area/commercial inclusion zone for the RFP, which the town suggested after learning the community would be transitioned to a new service model.

In an interview with Acadia Broadcasting on Wednesday, Herron explained that the town had suggested ANBL include all areas zoned commercial in Hampton, but NB Liquor only included parts of William Bell Drive and Main Street.

Herron said the reduced catchment area meant some properties that prospective proponents may have wanted NB Liquor to consider were not eligible.

However, he said he is willing to see the “glass half full,” because he believes the town is on a good path.

“Despite it being unnecessarily narrow, a good offering was proposed by the winner of the RFP,” he said. “I’m more than happy to move on only because, at the end of the day, we did get a good result.”

Herron also championed Lutes’ agency stores and said he is looking forward to seeing his plans for the town.

“I think the Town of Hampton and myself would suggest that a town like Hampton, that is in a period of growth, a period of ascension, needed to have an offering that was purpose-built,” he said. “That’s what is going to occur in this process, so it’s a positive development.”

Herron said the project is still in early stages, and no designs have been shared with him or the town so far.

Acadia Broadcasting asked ANBL whether community engagement was part of its process for selecting the successful candidate, but the Crown corporation did not answer the question.

Bosse said ANBL will work closely with the successful proponent during the transition to ensure the store meets agency store requirements, including minimum standards for cold storage, shelf space and other operational guidelines.