I would like to note though that he made a similar mistake by assuming that the fact that they serve alcohol was some kind of “joint venture” as you put it, however this is not the case. After saying how happy he was that they were serving alcohol and that he was glad that they were not being oppressed by the tyranny of the state system, the employee curtly informed him that they were, in fact, the state store. Though, as my colleague has said, they seem to go to great lengths to hide that fact.