Dive Brief:
- Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits agreed to acquire Horizon Beverage Group, a New England alcohol distrubution giant, it announced last week. Financial terms of the deal were not announced.
- Under the deal, Southern Glazer’s will control Horizon’s Massachusetts and Rhode Island operations, including its wine, beer and spirits portfolio. Horizon’s leadership team will remain intact, reporting to Scott Oppenheimer, east region president for Southern Glazer’s.
- The purchase will allow Southern Glazer’s, which updated its supply chain leadership in April, to expand its presence in the Northeast.
Dive Insight:
The acquisition reflects a consolidation of some major brands in the alcohol distribution supply chain as companies seek to improve their operational efficiency and broaden their reach.
Southern Glazer’s is the largest U.S. alcohol wholesaler, distributing beverages from over 7,000 producers, including Diageo and Constellation Brands. It operates in 44 states and Canada, distributing products from canned cocktails to wine to CBD beverages. Wayne E. Chaplin, the company’s CEO, said in a statement the distributor admired Horizon for its family-owned history and its commitment to innovation and sustainability.
“We expect all existing and new supplier partners, as well as customers, to benefit from our two companies’ strengths and expertise, and look forward to building on the great foundation already established in the valuable Massachusetts and Rhode Island markets,” Chaplin said.
Horizon has almost a century of experience in the New England region. The company said it believes the acquisition will benefit its supply chain capabilities.
“Southern Glazer’s is the ideal partner with the size, scale and strength to support our employees well into the future, and to maintain our promise of high-quality service for customers and suppliers in New England,” said Bob Epstein, co-chairman of Horizon, in the press release.
The M&A strategy of Southern Glazer’s, which has headquarters in both Miami and Dallas, has attracted some pushback from critics, including the Biden administration’s antitrust division. In June, CNBC and Politico reported the Federal Trade Commission is preparing a lawsuit against the distributor, which could target the company for allegedly providing “secret kickbacks” to its large retail partners.
