The late Frank Gaziano stands in front of a fleet of vehicles at National Distributors in the 1960s.
In 1960, led by the company's first owner, the late Frank Gaziano, National Distributors opened their doors and loaded their first vehicle. Today, Frank's passion and commitment to the family-owned business continues through the work of National Distributors' nearly 200 employees. Based in Greater Portland for over 50 years, National Distributors has strived to deliver quality products and support the local community.
Frank Gaziano was an executive with Anheuser-Busch before purchasing the southern Maine A-B distributorship in 1960. The company's first warehouse and office were located on York Street in Portland with just 10 employees, including his wife. Just three years later, as business increased, a facility was built on Fore Street in Portland. The new location allowed for an increase in beer sales and the addition of wine to the company's portfolio. As part of the expansion, the original building was renovated and expanded to include a can recycling center and a glass crusher.
In 1979, Jeff Kane joined the company as Vice President/General Manager. Along with the introduction of new technology and the need for additional storage space, National Distributors moved to their current location at 116 Wallace Ave, South Portland. The move meant not only more space, but more modern offices and a state of the art 'Controlled Environmental Warehouse'. By the following year, National Distributors had sold 1,000,000 cases of Anheuser-Busch products; the first of many positive milestones for the company.
Another milestone for National Distributors came during the company's 25th anniversary in 1984 when the business reached a goal that had been long sought after. For the first time, the company sold 1,000,000 cases of the Budweiser brand. Just a year after reaching this milestone, National Distributors was named an Ambassador Wholesaler, the highest award for an Anheuser-Busch distributor. Only 60 of the then 1,000 wholesalers had ever received this award. In the same year, because of increased business and their expanding product lines in beers, wines, and non-alcoholic products, the warehouse was expanded as part of the first of many renovations.
In 1989, Jeff Kane was named President and Successor Manager. That same year, the non-alcohol department was established to develop sales in waters, juices, and sodas. National Distributors pioneered the idea that there were sales and profit opportunities with non-alcoholic beverages. As a result, National Distributors purchased the distribution rights in southern Maine for Polar Sodas.
More accolades for the company came pouring in by the turn of the decade. In 1990, National Distributors was named the Anheuser-Busch ‘Wholesaler of the Year’ in New England. The increase in business also meant the addition of new jobs and management positions. Three years later, Frank Gaziano became the CEO and Jeff Kane became the Anheuser-Busch Equity Manager. In 1994, Dave Nelson was named warehouse supervisor and became the Operations Manager in 1995. This was the same time the company introduced “Pay for Performance” into the beer department as a tool to align pay and targeted sales achievement, a program that is still in place today.
During the 1990s, the company continued to grow its beer, wine and soda business by hiring more employees for sign making, shelf sets, and chain store calls. To increase performance and accountability, the beer and wine departments were divided into sales teams with team leaders and sales assistants assigned to each team. By the end of the decade, Bud Light was selling about 300,000 cases — 1/3 of Budweiser sales. Meanwhile, craft beers were becoming a factor in the marketplace with National Distributors selling Gritty’s, Harpoon and Redhook with Labatt being prominent in the beer import segment of the business. By 1999, non-alcoholic sales had accelerated to nearly 400,000 cases and wine sales achieved a major milestone with over 100,000 cases sold.
One of the biggest renovations in the company's 50 year history took place in 1995. The office area was renovated and expanded, including relocation of the beer and wine departments, as well as the financial department. This remodeling project set the stage for the company to continue to grow entering the 21st century.
The Acquisition and New Age Years
The turn of the century was an important time for National Distributors. In 2000, Carmine Castaldo became Successor Manager and continues to serve as Vice President of Sales and calls on national accounts. In 2002, Tim Longstaff became the new beer sales manager. As each beverage category became more complex and the number of SKUs increased, National Distributors hired more staff and built a core management team to manage the different beverage sales and guide the company into the new millennium.
As part of the company's rapid growth, the non-alcoholic beverage department became segregated with a separate sales and marketing department and a soda department was created with dedicated salespeople for non-alcoholic sales. This allowed National Distributors to broaden their reach and expand on the traditional account base of licensed accounts by adding hundreds non-licensed accounts such as schools, delis and cafeterias. Early in 2007, Jason Seavey was hired as the soda department sales manager. During his tenure there has been significant burst in the amount of energy drinks on the market, with Hansen's Monster Energy leading the way. With sales of Polar Sodas, Arizona Beverages, and Snapple at approximately 650,000 cases, the company has set a goal in the category to sell 1,000,000 cases.
The wine department at National Distributors has expanded in both size and its geographic footprint. Today two wine teams cover Cumberland and York counties while a third wine team sell products in central Maine. This distribution approach allows for statewide coverage when National Distributors aligns their territory with Maine Distributors. Dan Kane, became wine sales manager in 2005. Under his leadership, the company has seen steady growth of the company's product portfolio and sales volume. Today, National Distributors represents some of the finest wineries in the U.S. and many other countries.
National Distributors beer import portfolio has also grown tremendously since 2002. In 2002, National Distributors was appointed to sell Stella Artois, which was then controlled by INBEV. In 2003, National Distributors acquired the Heineken portfolio after a legal fight that clarified the Maine franchise law and the rights of distributors and Certificate of Approval Holders. In 2004, National Distributors also acquired the rights to the CCM brands of Dos Equis, Sol, Tecate and Carta Blanca and Bohemia. In 2006, National Distributors acquired the rights to Rolling Rock and the following year acquired the rights to the remaining INBEV brands of Bass, Beck’s and Lowenbrau after Anheuser-Busch became the national importer. In 2008, NDI acquired the rights to Newcastle Brown Ale after Heineken became the national importer.
In 2007, National Distributors added a 23,000 sq. foot addition to their warehouse. This enlarged the product storage portion of the warehouse to 150,000 sq. feet. It was also the first year that Bud Light out sold Budweiser to become NDI’s #1 selling brand.
In 2008, the beer sales department was re-aligned into groups that sell different trade channels. This allowed different sales groups to focus on the highly specialized on-premise channel and other groups to focus on off-premise accounts which are divided into chain stores and all other market accounts.
In 2009, Larry Levasseur succeeded Charlie Gagnon as the company's Chief Financial Officer. Also in 2009, Tim Longstaff was promoted to the position of General Manager – Sales Department with all department sales managers reporting to him.
Most recently, National Distributors donated a handicap accessible van to Alpha One, on organization that enables people with disabilities in Maine to live more fully and more independently in all aspects of their lives. In addition, the company along with Heineken, USA presented a check on behalf of Cumberland Farms to the Portland Police Department for $3,400 as part of the 'Heineken with a Heart' community program.
In January 2010, Frank Gaziano passed away peacefully at the age of 92. His legacy of hard work, commitment to customer service and community involvement has left a valuable impression on the employees at National Distributors.
When it opened its doors the company had just 10 employees. Now it features a team of almost 200 highly motivated team members who aggressively sell, market, and deliver a diverse portfolio of high quality beverages in Maine. Of the total number of employees, 25 percent of the workforce has worked for the company for more than for 10 years. As a symbol of longevity and dedication, Inventory Manager, George Stryker has been working for the company for 36 years.
In 2010, National Distributors celebrated its 50th anniversary in the beverage distribution business. While this was another historic milestone, the company remains focused on the future. National Distributors, Inc. has taken a multi-faceted approach to "green initiatives" for their operations. The new approach includes the use of eco-friendly cleaning solutions, the reduction of waste through a single sort system, energy efficient lighting fixtures and IceCOLD technology in air conditioning and refrigeration units has improved the operating efficiency of the company's refrigeration units by as much as 25 to 39 percent.
In 2011, construction was completed on a new keg cooler.
Every day, dedicated employees from the company provide quality products from their suppliers to statewide retail accounts making National Distributors a valuable part of the Maine business community.
Contact:
Jeff Kane
116 Wallace Avenue
South Portland, ME 04106
Tel: (207) 773-1719
Fax: (207) 775-4413 www.nat-dist.com jeff@nat-dist.com
The turn of the century was an important time for National Distributors. In 2000, Carmine Castaldo became Successor Manager and continues to serve as Vice President of Sales and calls on national accounts. In 2002, Tim Longstaff became the new beer sales manager. As each beverage category became more complex and the number of SKUs increased, National Distributors hired more staff and built a core management team to manage the different beverage sales and guide the company into the new millennium.