The National Grocers Association released a statement Oct. 2 regarding the Federal Trade Commission’s settlement of its price discrimination lawsuit against Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits, calling it a demonstration of why enforcement of the Robinson-Patman Act matters for small and independent businesses. Southern Glazer’s has denied the allegations.
The FTC announced the settlement Oct. 2, concluding the commission’s first enforcement action under the Robinson-Patman Act in a generation. The lawsuit, filed in December 2024, alleged the nation’s largest wine and spirits distributor deprived small, independent businesses of discounts and rebates available to large competitors, charging independent retailers significantly higher prices for identical bottles than competing chains such as Total Wine, Walmart and Kroger, even when stores were located a few miles or blocks apart.
“This settlement is an important demonstration of why enforcement of the Robinson-Patman Act matters for small and independent businesses. The principles at the heart of this case extend well beyond a single industry,” NGA said in a statement. “Independent grocers continue to face significant disparities in the prices and terms available to them compared with the nation’s largest retailers. Strong and consistent enforcement of the nation’s antitrust laws is critical to ensuring a fair and competitive marketplace for independent businesses and the communities and consumers they serve.”
Washington, D.C.-based NGA represents the retail and wholesale community grocers of the independent sector, which generates more than $250 billion in sales and 1.1 million jobs, with members in every congressional district. It said its advocacy has helped drive “the strongest focus on antitrust and competition policy in decades” and that it looks forward to working with policymakers and antitrust enforcers to support fair competition for independent grocers.
Settlement terms
The proposed stipulated order, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, covers nearly all Southern Glazer’s wine and spirits sales to the five largest chain retailers in 26 states, including California, Florida, New York and Texas. It targets “paired” transactions in which Southern sells a product to a chain retailer while at the same time selling the same product to a nearby independent retailer at a significantly higher price.
Southern will violate the order if paired transactions involve significant price discrimination exceeding a threshold based on state-specific operating costs, or recurring discrimination exceeding $5,000 in aggregate over 12 months. The company can resolve a violation by paying the independent retailer 1.5 times the aggregated price differential; if it does not, the FTC can bring an enforcement action under which Southern would owe double the differential. The order runs six years, overseen by an independent monitor. The commission vote was 2-0.
“This settlement marks a significant milestone for the FTC in its enforcement of the Robinson-Patman Act, which Congress enacted to empower small businesses to compete against large ones,” said Daniel Guarnera, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Competition. “The FTC is committed to ensuring that all businesses, no matter their size, can compete on a fair and level playing field.”
Statement from Southern Glazer’s
Related: NGA Commends FTC’s Enforcement Of Robinson-Patman Act