Office Supplies and Liquor Don't Mix In New Zealand

[Anonymous]

Office Supplies and Liquor Don't Mix In New Zealand
Office supply firm's booze delivery plan rejected

An office supplies company's request to deliver booze to customers has been rejected.

Auckland's Gem Office Products Depot wanted to deliver alcohol alongside fruit juice, stationery and cleaning supplies to office workers.

Under the Sale of Liquor Act, local licensing authorities can grant off-licences if they think alcohol sales are an "appropriate complement" to other goods a business sells.

Neither police nor the Medical Officer of Health opposed Gem's application, but Auckland's district licensing inspector Stephen Galvin claimed booze was not an appropriate complement to other goods Gem sold, which were overwhelmingly office supplies.

Gem disagreed, saying it was developing its business into a "one-stop shop" for customers.

Gem said it was reasonable to expect some offices to order drinks, including alcoholic ones, when ordering stationery and office supplies.

Judge John Hole disagreed with the company.

"In this case, the sale of alcohol has nothing to do with the kind of goods sold by the applicant. Non-alcoholic drinks constitute a very small part of the overall business of the applicant."

Judge Hole also pointed out other firms had made similar bids, and failed.

One earlier case involved an application from an Ashburton company Combined Rural Traders Society, which wanted to sell beer, wine and spirits from its site as well as a range of rural merchandise. The High Court turned that request down.

Gem told APNZ the company acknowledged the latest decision and was moving on.

Office Supplies and Liquor Don't Mix In New Zealand
Office supply firm's booze delivery plan rejected

An office supplies company's request to deliver booze to customers has been rejected.

Auckland's Gem Office Products Depot wanted to deliver alcohol alongside fruit juice, stationery and cleaning supplies to office workers.

Under the Sale of Liquor Act, local licensing authorities can grant off-licences if they think alcohol sales are an "appropriate complement" to other goods a business sells.

Neither police nor the Medical Officer of Health opposed Gem's application, but Auckland's district licensing inspector Stephen Galvin claimed booze was not an appropriate complement to other goods Gem sold, which were overwhelmingly office supplies.

Gem disagreed, saying it was developing its business into a "one-stop shop" for customers.

Gem said it was reasonable to expect some offices to order drinks, including alcoholic ones, when ordering stationery and office supplies.

Judge John Hole disagreed with the company.

"In this case, the sale of alcohol has nothing to do with the kind of goods sold by the applicant. Non-alcoholic drinks constitute a very small part of the overall business of the applicant."

Judge Hole also pointed out other firms had made similar bids, and failed.

One earlier case involved an application from an Ashburton company Combined Rural Traders Society, which wanted to sell beer, wine and spirits from its site as well as a range of rural merchandise. The High Court turned that request down.

Gem told APNZ the company acknowledged the latest decision and was moving on.

[Author]

October 2, 2014 at 10:54 AM