Liquor retailers had to scramble to make sure they had stock when Saskatchewan first announced they'd no longer be distributing US-produced liquor, and now that the ban has come off, those retailers are re-adjusting to another shift in the status quo.
Originally seen in a leaked email from SLGA, and later confirmed by the province on Tuesday, the change back to the status quo will provide retailers with their old options for buying beer from south of the border.
Some American brands were still sold in Canada so long as they were produced in Canada, but the newest change opens up Canada to all American-produced beer.
Kandyce Hirsch, the general manager of the Local Buzz Liquor Store in Estevan, says the last couple of months have been a mixed bag for customers.
"There's some people that are missing some of the products, for sure, and there are other people that don't mind us not supporting U.S. products at all. But we've definitely seen the U.S. liquor products depleting on the shelves and, in some cases, things that we haven't been able to get since the government had decided that we can't sell U.S. products anymore. So some of them sold out really quickly, and we haven't had them for a few months now."
In order to find replacements for American brands, stores had to see what Canadian-produced alcohol they could swap places with.
Jeff Pierson, the manager of Ice Factory, says the move was a win for Canadian brands that ended up on more shelves for a few months.
"We did our research and found similar products that were made in Canada. So that wasn't tough at all. And again, it was a win."
For the products from America that can't be replaced, Pierson says he'll be happy to get those back in the stores.
"There was a few products that were really missed, I think. So those will be more of our priority to bring back. But some, I don't know if we'll be in a big rush to bring back now that we've found similar ones. So, where we can keep selling Canadian products, we certainly will."
While American alcohol will be back on the shelf and liquor retailers will be closer to normal, Hirsch says there will still be a difference when it comes to prices.
"We'll have a few less empty spots on the shelves, and the items that were missing before that we had sold out of will now be replaced. So that will look good. The one thing that you will start seeing is once those U.S. products come in, I believe a lot of them will be charged that tariff. So prices are likely going to be going up everywhere."
In a statement, the provincial government said the reversion was to let consumers have the choice between American and Canadian brands.