Do you want to become a beverage distributor or have concerns about the biggest beverage distribution company worldwide? The booming of the beverage business in both sales and markets witnessed the dramatic progress of beverage distributors.
It is easy to realize that once the increase in demand leads to the growth of the supply. Everyone can see the opportunities and have the desire to gain profit. In this article, we will analyze the top 10 largest global beverage distributors in 2023, discover their success and several secrets behind. Let’s get started.
How has the worldwide beverage industry developed in recent decades?
No one can deny the successful development of the beverage industry in both quality and quantity. Despite the extensive damage caused by Covid-19, the Food and Beverage industry witnessed a booming increase in sales and ensured the development over the years.
To be more specific, let’s look up these statistics of some particular sorts of beverage below to get more clearer picture of the progress in the beverage industry:
- 10 percent increase in sales of craft beers in 2020
- 28 percent of millennials stated drinking wine daily
- $1.60 trillion is estimated sales for non-alcohol drink by 2025
Being an element of the beverage industry, you must recognize that this time has never been better. By investigating this blog, you will get the most valuable knowledge about this industry, especially the largest distributors that play an essential role in building your development of the beverage industry.
Who are beverage distributors?
Before going deeper into the definition, role, mission and other surrounding relationships of distributors, let’s take a look at the supply chain:
Manufacturers -> Distributors –> Wholesalers –> Retailers –> Consumers
Beverage distributors also take charge of similar tasks with other distributors in general. Beverage distributors are often the middleman between Manufacturer and Wholesaler. Being the first link of the chain, beverage distribution companies will ensure the smooth allocation of the goods to other resellers or customers by skipping some intermediaries.
In the relationship with other elements of the chain, beverage distributors work closely with a manufacturer to gain better product visibility or achieve the targeted number of goods sold.
Compared with wholesalers, beverage distributors are more proactive in communicating and educating resellers’ behaviors about new products. Moreover, some distributors can do some logistics or storage stages to support the leading manufacturers.
Despite no involvement in manufacturing, they are the representatives of the company in response to the customers and look out for more orders.
The beverage distributor’s primary mission is to provide products under the ready-to-drink form to bring their customers (wholesalers) the best portfolio in the industry with all of the top quality brands.
It’s no exaggeration to say that our company’s performance won’t achieve productivity if we cooperate with the ineffective distributors.
What types of beverages are most preferred by prominent companies?
The beverage distributors, who have gained a lot of industrial experience, always know what suitable products for their company are. Remarkably, this product line should have fit with the company’s strategy and satisfy customers’ tastes.
With the high quality and good for your health or suitable for your sensitivity, some kinds of the beverage are loved and have become favorite drinks among various beverage types. We have listed them below for your further reference, which consists of both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages.
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Alcoholic drinks
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- Beer: Beer is one of the most preferred beverages. As a result, it has accounted for more than half of sales in alcoholic drinks. Also, it can take into account a healthy beverage if we consume an adequate daily amount.
- Wine: There are various kinds of wine, from popular to luxury. During the development of the beverage industry, wine distributors have taken up their position and earned back a considerable profit margin, especially in European countries.
- Cider: Let’s take Strong bow is the representative for Cider. Deeply, Cider is a junior drink including alcohol compared to two senior Wine and Beer. However, Cider is one of the trendy products that most beverage distributors are seeking for.
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Non-alcohol drinks
Apart from the beloved alcoholic, beverage customers deserve a considerable favor for non-alcoholic products due to their health benefits and diversified flavors.
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- Soft drink: It makes up the largest proportion of the market share among non-alcoholic beverage distribution. Soft drinks can serve broader customer segments since they carry more flavors with abundant choices.
- Milk: because of the great benefits that Fruit juice brings to customers, it can be a potential market for wholesale beverage distributors. It is considered the most popular drink among consumers. Therefore, milk distributors likely have a significant market volume to participate in.
- Coffee and Tea: continuing the list, these two kinds of the beverage have been interesting in a long time with an identified and loyal customer volume. In short, people use coffee and tea as an entertainment treatment for the soul.
- Energy drink: It is an unmissed product line that all beverage distributors need to consider. Besides being a functional drink, energy drinks should be added to your distribution list for diversification purposes, making variable selections for customers.
10 largest beverage distributors you should follow
Top 5 Alcoholic beverage distribution companies
1. Diageo
Diageo’s headquarters is located in the center of London, England. Being the biggest alcoholic drink distributor, Diageo focuses on two product lines: spirits and beers. Established in 1997, they provided a unique collection of more than 200 famous brands in over 180 countries.
Diageo has an annual volume of 126 million cases. In terms of market share, this alcoholic distribution company is the largest in the United States with excellent brand recognition despite a decrease in sales of 8% in 2020.
For the time being, they have more than 27,775 talented staff working together to develop the business and nurture their brands. As a result, Diageo is always willing to create qualifications beyond customers’ expectations regardless of a considerable number of volumes.
2. Breakthru beverage group
Breakthru beverage group is the second-largest alcoholic beverage distributor in the world, located in North American. Starting up the business in 2016, Breakthru delivered a wide range of alcohol products, especially the world’s top premium and luxury spirits, beer and wine brands.
Now, this company is family-owned and operated by more than 10,000 enthusiastic employees. In 2015, the Breakthru beverage group merged with $6 billion in annual revenue and witnessed a dramatic growth in some subsequent years.
In particular, not only do Breakthru distributors care for their people but also they focus on the differentiation of services as well as the products that they offer.
To gain today’s success in the beverage industry, their sales and logistics experts try to find the most convenient ways to reduce unnecessary stages for the customers to get the best price regardless of ordered volume.
Employing over 7,000 associates and possessing vast sales, Breakthru Beverage Group creates many great opportunities to join a variable company culture.
3. Republic National Distributing Company
Republic National Distributing Company (RNDC) is a world-scale alcohol beverage distributor, created on May 1, 2007. They built on the robust foundations of three family-owned organizations: Block Distributing Company, N. Goldring Corporation, and National Distributing Company.
For the time being, the Headquarters of RNDC is located in New Orleans, Los Angeles, with a large market worldwide. The distribution company employs over 9,000 staff worldwide with 42 U.S. offices and warehouses, discovering 21 states and the District of Columbia.
The main product of RNDC is premium wine and spirits, bringing the best quality and credible brands to consumers. In 2019, the total revenue reached $11 billion and continued to grow.
As a true industry leader, the Republic National Distributing Company (RNCD) has a highly sought-after employer due to its outstanding commitment to career and promotion opportunities, especially the value contribution to family and community.
Besides, RNDC always tries to maintain a stunning 85 percent internal promotion rate and fill more than 65 percent of their current management roles. Therefore, this company would be ideal for everyone to look for long-term work with variable benefits.
4. Pernod Ricard
Forty-six years ago, Pernod Ricard was established in the capital of France by the founder Paul Ricard. This company is one of the leading alcoholic distributors, with the main product is a comprehensive and high-quality wine portfolio.
Pernod Ricard has an extensive distribution capacity and approximately 20,000 employees due to its high position in the beverage industry. Alexandre Ricard is Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, playing an essential role in Pernod’s success.
According to the 2018 statistics, this company obtained 123 million cases of annual volume. Besides, Revenue reached the number of €8.987 billion with €1.577 billion for Net income. For many decades of development, Pernod Ricard is trying to maintain a high-profit margin and broaden market share for the leading alcoholic beverage distributor position.
5. Reyes Beer Division
Being the most extensive beer distributor in the United States, Reyes Beer Division now has more than 2,000 qualified employees with dedicated experiences and passion for the beverage industry.
This alcoholic beverage distribution company, founded in 1976, had the Headquarters in Spartanburg, South Carolina. However, three years later, they moved to Chicago for further expansion. According to the annual report, Reyes Beer Division reaches a distribution volume of up to 171 million cases to nearly 66,000 retailers across the country.
In the past 40+ years of launching the business in the beverage industry, they always consider the people as their number one asset. As a result, Reyes Beer Division can proudly provide an optimal solution-driven workforce that other distribution companies cannot match.
Top 5 Non-alcoholic beverage distribution companies
1. Red Bull
Dietrich Mateschitz founded Red Bull in the mid-80s, proud to be a pioneer in the beverage industry. However, the Red Bull distribution company was established in 2009 to deliver Red Bull’s products at a world-class level exclusively.
Up to now, people can see Red Bull as one of the most outstanding beverage distributors with more than 2,500 employees, providing a premium distribution network worldwide. Red Bull’s Head Quarters is predominantly located in Santa Monica, California and owned 92 branches along with 25+ states.
Among various types of beverages, Energy drink is the main product line of Red Bull. Being a giant in the beverage distribution industry, Red Bull always tries their best to diversify the offerings, from the traditional ones to customized products to serve the customers, such as organic varieties, zero-calorie or sugar-free.
During 32 years of launching the business, Red Bull raises the brand value to $10.4 billion. According to April 2018, they sold 75 billion cans in 171 countries, generating 6.07 billion euros worldwide.
Red Bull beverage distributors always believe that being authentic and positive, not too serious, will make the differences achieve this current success.
2. Veroni Brands Corp
Veroni Brands Corp is known as a Non-Alcoholic Drinks Distributor, located in Vernon Hills, United States. It was founded in 2016 with both domestic and international market offers to own the products’ quality.
Veroni focuses on distributing energy drinks. They include some trendy to best-seller products, including Iron Energy Classic, Iron Energy Zero Sugar, and Iron Energy Mojito.
Despite being a junior in the beverage industry, Veroni has developed dramatically, providing premium European products into the U.S. market. This company has gained a hefty profit margin, making up more than $6 million in revenue in 2020.
3. Gruvi – Non-Alcoholic Wine & Craft Beer
Continuing the list, Gruvi – Non-Alcoholic Wine & Craft Beer is different from others due to its unique products. As the name suggests, the main product line is non-alcoholic beverages but called Wine and Craft Beer. Officially launched in 2019, for the time being,
The Headquarters of Gruvi settled down in the United States and is one of the leading beverage distributors.
Choosing a separate way to break into the beverage industry, Gruvi’s mission is to bring unforgettable taste and health benefits to their customers. They believe that customer satisfaction is the company’s wealth.
With the starting point of more than $1 million for annual revenue, Gruvi promises to gain a determined position in the beverage industry.
4. Hill Street Beverage Company Inc.
Established in 2008 in Canada, Hill Street was another giant guy in non-alcoholic beverages distribution. With industrial experiences, they have gained a specific customer volume by providing high-quality products.
Hill Street Beverage Company Inc has served customers with a portfolio of cannabis-infused wine, cocktails, and beers. All of them are free-alcoholic, which puts the customer’s benefit first.
Not only concerning the health, but they would also focus on the clients’ experiences by making diversity for their product line. Tasting a cup of iced-cold beer for celebration but no alcohol consumption must have given you unforgettable little moments.
In 2020, Hill Street Beverage Company Inc witnessed a substantial increase in the number of returning customers who fall in love with non-alcoholic beer and wine. Hill Street beverage distributors reached approximately C$3 million in revenue by the end of June, to be more specific.
In 2020, contribute C$726,000 to gross profit, raising 68% year-over-year. Despite Covid-19 Epidemic, the online revenue of this distribution company increases by 242% compared to the previous year.
5. Dcada Vertriebs GmbH
Dcada Vertriebs GmbH is a beverage distributor in Columbia and was officially founded in 2016. Its branches have broadened the logistics solutions across five continents from the headquarters in Zurich with more than 50 countries worldwide.
The main product of Dcada is soft drinks with various flavors, sizes and packaging. Besides, it is noticeable that the share capital of Dcada Vertriebs GmbH made up EUR 25,000.00, promising a big jump in the next coming years.
For the time being, Dcada has imported organic ingredients from three Colombian companies. The suppliers buy the raw materials, process them to fruit pulp or raw sugar cane, before selling them to Dcada.
The companies guarantee the farmers fair prices for their crops, up to 20 percent higher than the market average market price or through fixed wages. In addition to their annual organic certification fees.
Running the business for 5 years, Dcada has witnessed growth in sales by more than 80 percent annually, being Colombia’s biggest supermarket chain.
The secrets behind the most successful beverage distributors in the world
At any moment, have you ever wondered that among numerous distribution beverage companies, how can they compete and identify their position in an enormous industry?
Each business has its own way to success. Due to the unique resources and the company’s situation, the strategy should keep track of this particular economic circumstance. Thereby, it always exists a standard called secret tips for these successes regardless of the kind of your product:
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Be the game holder in managing cash flow position
We can see two main components creating the Cash flow is money in and money in. Make it simple, don’t let the money out of control is the key to avoid unexpected financial problems.
However, estimating the cost is not an easy task. This work includes a forecast of what will be sold, what can gain and how much the overhead. Thereby, managing Cash Flow can obtain one step closer to the company’s success.
Here are some tips that are applied to cash flow management:
- Follow up closer to the significant payments, chasing the timeline of pre-draft to control
- Be careful of collecting payment, follow up daily with emails and calls
- Understand your financial position, know what and when is allocated and paid.
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Understand your customers
The old saying: “Knowing your customers to satisfy their needs and wants in the best way.” Despite the apparent rules, most of companies fail to put effort into comprehending their customers. Building some prominent customer profiles suggests how your business improves for better servings in the future.
Customers choose you since your products can solve their problems or fulfill their undeserving needs. With the target customers’ avatars, you can have the dos and not dos tips to attract and mutually benefit them.
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Handle inventory system actively
There is the fact that you cannot run the business of a B2B model without a great inventory system. Inventory can directly affect the resource that we use for providing services.
Here are some tips that are applied to Inventory system management:
- Double-checking items in and out
- Follow and update the stock levels on invoices then physically when pick and pack.
- Get the stock details accurately at all times.
- Using advanced software to keep track of stocks by invoices is not recommended.
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Give your team to succeed
Using technology to involve in some daily tasks is possible to avoid the cracks for the customers. In today’s modern life, it’s no reason not to use the cloud to automate tasks. The company should replace some cumbersome techniques such as Excel or paper forms to create the optimal procedure with maximizing convenience.
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Compete on service, not price
Because finding new customers is challenging and expensive, maintaining the relationship between company and customer should have been your number one priority. Please kindly note that don’t miss the opportunity to access your customers due to some minimal mistakes or lacking a tiny mistake.
Primarily, it is imperative to take care of your customers, from the product’s awareness to the post-purchase process. In this way, the clients can feel their importance and your respect for them.
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Shorten your order procedures
With the development in the industry and the vast number of competitors, you can lose your customers just before the delivery. If your order processing is too complicated, it can cause time-consuming and tired feelings for your customers when following your procedure. It is precisely one minus point.
Therefore, make sure that the order process is easy to follow and automated if possible.
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Create loyal customers for sustainable development
Once the company grows and the number of customers increases, they may lose contact, leading to customers loss by chance. When customers stand in that way, they often intend on looking for a new attractive company to improve their experiences.
By creating loyal customers, the company can ensure stable development with better offerings, gaining credibility and benefits from customers.
Thereby, these tactics that we have mentioned above would help develop first and then make your beverage business different.
Conclusion
By investigating this piece of writing, it will satisfy your thirst for updated knowledge about beverage distributing services in particular and the growth of the beverage industry in general.
To sum up, after carrying out indeed research, we give you a valuable source of the top beverage distributors and then how they get successful in the beverage industry.
A popular question is raised: “Do you wish to participate in the beverage supply chains and get a large profit margin from trendy products that satisfy the interest of the majority of customers?”.
If yes, you should check out Tan Do Brand – a beverage brand from the rich tropical fruit land, Vietnam, that has successfully welcomed in more than 40+ countries globally, typically as the USA, United Kingdom, and Canada.
“Don’t hesitate to perform and get success like these giants. They can do it. So can you”.
Tan Do is a global beverage ODM/OEM manufacturer and supplier located in Vietnam. Since 1996, we have built trust and credibility not only throughout Vietnam but also in many parts of the world. Leveraging state-of-the-art technology, we have crafted thousands of products that align with ISO, HACCP, HALAL, FDA, and many other standards.