Hi Maya! So... You cannot change group ownership in the store. There are no additional user groups in the build environment. The chgrp failing is by design ('it's a feature, not a bug'), and there's no way to subvert this. The group is not required during the build process.
The correct way to make smtpctl setgid is to use Guix System's setuid-programs field, and use (setgid? #t) (group "smtpq") for smtpctl. Kind regards, T G-R Sent on the go. Excuse or enjoy my brevity.