A Brief History of Southern Wine & Spirits of New England –Vermont Division
In February 2005, Mr. Wayne E. Chaplin, President and Chief Operating Officer of Southern Wine & Spirits of America, Inc., Miami, Florida, announced that it had acquired the Control State operations formerly owned by The United Group of Braintree, Massachusetts. The purchase agreement included operations in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont and Hannah & Dunn LLC of North Carolina and Virginia.
Since its founding in 1968, Southern Wine and Spirits of America, Inc. (Southern), is the leading nationally recognized wine and spirits distributor in the United States known for its historic commitment to delivering the highest standards of customer service, creative marketing programs and partnerships. The Company is also known for its best-in-industry professional and well-trained sales, operational and support staff, its ongoing investments in and contributions to hospitality and beverage education for its staff, its customers and to many national educational institutions. In addition, Southern is justly respected for its deeply held belief in the importance of giving back, for being a socially responsible corporate citizen and for making generous contributions to national, state and local charitable organizations.
Today, Southern operates in 28 states, including its original Florida market, where its corporate headquarters is located in Miami. Over the past 38 years, pursuing a determined strategy to expand through internal growth as well as through the acquisition of established wholesalers, Southern Wine and Spirits of America expanded its Florida operations into California in 1969, Nevada in 1976, Arizona in 1992, South Carolina in 1993, Pennsylvania in 1995, Hawaii in 1996, Kentucky in 1998, New Mexico in 2000, Colorado in 2001, Illinois in 2002, New York in 2004, Maine, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Carolina, Vermont, Virginia and West Virginia in 2005. In 2006, the Company began operations in Alabama; and, in a partnership arrangement, now operates in Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming as well. In 2007, the Company entered Ohio, the country's third largest Control jurisdiction. On a national basis, the Company employs more than 10,000 team members.
Referring specifically to the New England trio of operations, Mr. Wayne E. Chaplin said: “The acquisition of these Control State operations in New England will be a perfect fit for our overall Northeast Strategy, where our goal is to bring a new level of service and professionalism to our on- and off-premise customers and our supplier partners. This new tri-state fine wine division, consisting of Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont, will continue to be run with the highest levels of professionalism together with our Company’s reputation for delivering outstanding customer service.”
According to Mr. Chaplin, “Joe LaRocca, Vice President, General Manager of Southern Wine & Spirits of New England will work hand in hand with Peter Hickey, Executive Vice President-General Manager of Southern Wine & Spirits of America’s Control State Group and his entire team to ensure we keep growing in these three critical markets.”
Since the acquisition, Southern Wine & Spirits of New England’s Vermont division has emerged as one of the state’s most innovative wine and spirits distributors. Overall, Southern Wine & Spirits of New England’s Vermont division is growing rapidly and is poised to post still stronger gains during the next few years, according to Mr. LaRocca.
Summing up, Mr. LaRocca said that Southern Wine & Spirits of New England’s Vermont division is able to field a state-of-the-art distribution, marketing and merchandising network.