Editor’s note: On Monday, June 2nd, RNDC confirmed that it is withdrawing from California. Read the full story here.
On Thursday, Brown-Forman — the spirits giant behind brands like Jack Daniel’s and Woodford Reserve — announced major changes in its U.S. distribution, following the completion of a Request for Proposal (RFP) in 13 markets. Republic National Distributing Co. (RNDC), Brown-Forman’s longtime and current largest distribution partner, will see the biggest losses, dropping from 23 to 12 markets.
Brown-Forman’s rehauled distribution network will include seven new distributor organizations. According to the company, this move will help the Brown-Forman brands succeed in the ever-changing alcohol industry.
“This milestone marks an exciting evolution in our U.S. strategy, building upon our commitment to elevate our premium spirits portfolio and reach consumers in impactful ways,” executive vice president and president of the Americas for Brown‑Forman, Michael Masick, said in a release. “This process has enabled us to evolve existing relationships, form new ones, and, in every instance, align around a common vision for Brown‑Forman brands and a strategy to achieve our collective aspirations.”
Brown-Forman already made waves earlier this year when it switched up its California distribution from RNDC to beer distributor Reyes Beverage Group. After losing Brown-Forman, as well as other heavyweight suppliers including Tito’s Vodka and Sazerac, RNDC’s CEO Nick Mehall announced he was stepping down from the company in February.
The changes announced today will go into effect on Aug. 1. The new partners include wine and spirits distributors Johnson Brothers, Oklahoma Spirits Alliance, and Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits; beer distributors Columbia Distributing, Keg-1 River City, and Reyes Beverage Group; and Specialty Imports, which works with wine, beer, and spirits in Alaska. (Reyes will pick up Hawaii in addition to the previously announced California deal, which became effective May 2025.)
Following the transition, existing partner Breakthru Beverage Group (BBG) will become the company’s largest national distributor, covering 14 key markets across the U.S. and Canada.
“These decisions were taken with great thought and care, and we believe they will bring tremendous opportunities for growth in the years and decades to come,” Robinson Brown IV, senior vice president and managing director, of the U.S. and Canada for Brown‑Forman stated in the release. “Together, we will share Brown‑Forman’s iconic family of brands with consumers across the U.S., fueling accelerated momentum and achieving new levels of success.”
VP Pro Take
“Well, the thing everybody figured was going to happen happened. Kind of? Brown-Forman’s middle-tier mix-’n’-match has been rumored for months, and both social media chatter and my own sources — including some recent former employees at RNDC and B-F — had consistently claimed the megadistiller was planning on ditching its longtime distributor nationwide. That didn’t quite come to pass, which is the good news for RNDC’s badly bloodied books. And the fact that B-F’s execs made a point to pay some lip service to its semi-spurned partner means this is more like a cry for couple’s therapy than process-service on divorce papers. But that’s where RNDC’s silver lining ends, and as I recently reported at Fingers, the disarray within the country’s second-largest distributor runs deep. Are RNDC’s 12 remaining B-F markets safe from future shifts? Would you bet a bottle of Woodford Reserve Double Double Oaked on it?
Two things jump out at me when looking at the winners in B-F’s Realignment RFP-alooza. First, the fact that the supplier is moving its volume to Johnson Brothers in Texas is a damning indictment of RNDC’s performance given its headquarters is located in Grand Prairie, many of its execs are Lone Star natives, and it just last week announced a plan to shore up its presence there with 100 new on-premise employees. Ouch. The other aspect that caught my eye is the beer houses in the mix. We already knew B-F had a relationship with Reyes Beverage Group in California and Hawaii, so that’s not surprising. But look at mid-market roll-up Keg-1 picking up Jack Daniels et al. in Kentucky, and private equity-backed Pacific-Northwest heavy Columbia Distributing doing likewise in Washington! When people talk about “total beverage” these days it’s mostly in reference to suppliers moving into single-serve packages with familiar flavors: B-F’s Jack and Coke canned cocktail, for example. But here’s another good reminder that it cuts both ways, with beer distributors picking up full-bottle liquor volume. Sometimes, at least.” —Dave Infante, VinePair columnist and contributing editor
The article Following California Switch, Brown-Forman Drops RNDC in More Than 10 Markets appeared first on VinePair.
