Southern Glazer’s FTC price discrimination settlement

Southern Glazer’s Wine and Spirits, the largest liquor distributor in the United States, has reached a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to resolve a 2024 lawsuit alleging price discrimination.

The FTC’s complaint claimed the company violated the Robinson-Patman Act by providing significant discounts and rebates to large chain retailers, such as Walmart, Costco, Kroger, and Total Wine, while denying similar pricing to smaller, independent stores. Reports indicated that independent retailers in the same geographic areas sometimes paid between 12% and 67% more for identical products than large chains.

Under the terms of the settlement, which requires district court approval, an independent monitor will oversee the agreement for six years. The settlement specifically targets “paired” transactions where price differences exceed certain thresholds based on state operating costs or exceed $5,000 in recurring differences over 12 months. In such cases, Southern Glazer’s may be required to pay the independent retailer 1.5 times the aggregated price differential.

Southern Glazer’s has maintained that it did not violate the law and the settlement does not include an admission of wrongdoing. The company stated it is pleased to resolve the case without a trial and does not anticipate material changes to its pricing practices.