Federal Trade Commission Settles Dispute With Total Wine
A logo sign outside of a Total Wine & More retail store location May 13, 2020, in Richmond, Virginia. (Photo: Kristoffer Tripplaar/Sipa USA)
On Tuesday, Brewbound reported that the Federal Trade Commission has reached a settlement with Total Wine over its alleged role in the FTC’s investigation into liquor distributor Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits.
In October, the FTC announced it was seeking Total Wine’s compliance in an antitrust probe with the Federal Court.
The FTC is looking into whether Southern Glazer’s Wine and Spirits LLC offered large retailers, including Total Wine, more competitive prices than smaller liquor stores, providing large retailers an unfair advantage in the marketplace.
Price discrimination such as offering discounts to larger retailers is prohibited under the Robinson-Patman Act.
Per Brewbound, the FTC and Total Wine filed a joint notice of their agreement Monday in the U.S. District Court Eastern District of Virginia, requested the cancellation of a hearing that was scheduled for Wednesday and asked the court to stay the matter for 120 days while the terms of the agreement are being implemented.
According to Brewbound, Total Wine complied with some demands for information, but not all, and said the information it provided ensured that the FTC “knows every price that RSSI’s affiliated entities have paid since 2018 to Southern, along with the retail prices at which those products were sold.”
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