Following several earlier releases, we are now preparing for future releases that look at how to further enhance our operations and our customer and stakeholder experience.
October 2026 - Mid 2027: New warehouse management system
• A unified warehouse management system will be rolled out across LCBO distribution centres (with the exception of Durham), replacing disparate systems and processes used to manage trailers and shipping and receiving documents, including POs and ASNs.
• Our Ottawa warehouse has already launched new technology, and remaining warehouses will roll out in a measured way through to mid 2027. Stakeholders for each warehouse will be contacted in advance of the transition with readiness and contingency plans established for each transition.
Spring 2027: Supply chain optimization & integrated business planning
• A centralized assortment, space and inventory model will be introduced. This approach will leverage integrated data to determine what products go to which locations, where they are placed, and how much to buy to optimize sales and inventory.
• LCBO’s Merchandise Financial Planning system, which is used to plan and forecast the business, will be upgraded. This will enable LCBO to have more precise plans under a unified product hierarchy, and to integrate financial planning functions across assortment, space, and inventory. This will mean more accurate sales and inventory management.
• New forecasting tools and improved Collaborative Planning, Forecasting and Replenishment (CPFR) processes will provide participating suppliers, agents, and LCBO teams with better visibility to support joint production, purchasing, and inventory planning.
Both forecasting and Vendor Performance Program reporting will be accessed centrally via LCBO Gateway, reducing the amount of emails between suppliers, agents and LCBO teams.
• A new point-of-sale system (POS) will be piloted in select stores, integrating many of the retail processes that operate independently today, including inventory management and centralized replenishment. This will create a more integrated flow of real-time information across the retail network.
More information will be made available as we approach the Spring 2027 launch.
Spring 2027 - Early 2028: Customer & store transformation
• Enhanced promotion and markdown management capabilities will be launched once the full store rollout of the POS is complete (late 2027 - early 2028).
