About Winebow
Winebow’s mission is to be the premier U.S. importer and distributor of an international portfolio of premium quality fine wine, spirits and sake—all with an emphasis on education.
At Winebow, we are committed to bringing the best representations of products from global regions to market. As a result, Winebow’s extensive portfolio of premium wines, spirits and sakes from around the world is unsurpassed in terms of quality and selection.
Headquartered in Montvale, New Jersey, Winebow is a thriving business with approximately 400 employees including a sizeable national sales force. Winebow’s continued success has been driven by a winning combination of extremely high quality products and one of the most well educated groups of professionals in the industry. As a testament to our success, Winebow has grown its revenue every year since our founding in 1980 – an uninterrupted 28 year accomplishment. At Winebow, we are passionate about what we do and it shows.
Winebow is organized into distinct operating divisions that are overseen by an experienced and talented senior management team.
These segments can be described as follows:
Winebow Imports:
Our Import Group is a direct importer of a high quality portfolio of wines and specialty spirits from 30+ countries, with specialization in Italian wine. Our top suppliers have been with Winebow more than 17 years, on average. Retail price per bottle ranges from $8 to over $400, with average of $16. The products that make up our imports division include items from Italy, Spain, Chile, Argentina, Portugal, Scotland, Brazil and Japan that are made available nationally—in all 50 states—through our network of approximately 128 distributors. The business is supported by a highly trained national sales team that is more than 60 people strong. Our Import Group can be further segmented into two operating units:
- Leonardo LoCascio Selections (LLS): As an Italian wine importer, our Leonardo LoCascio Selections (LLS) portfolio is unrivaled in terms of breadth and depth. The LLS Group represents almost 400 choice wines from the estates of approximately 75 high-quality Italian producers.
- Winebow Brands International (WBI): WBI includes our acclaimed import portfolio from Spain, Chile, Argentina, Portugal, Scotland, Brazil and Japan, representing over 40 estates.
Winebow Wholesale (WBW):
WBW operates distributorships in the northeastern United States—New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Washington, DC, Connecticut and Massachusetts. This business sells to thousands of restaurants and retailers through more than 125 of the most highly trained sales people in the industry.
Our distribution portfolio is comprised of products that we import (LLS, WBI and Click Wine Group) as well as an extensive selection of wines, spirits and specialty items supplied from other domestic and international producers. Winebow also markets its own labels from Italy and Spain in select wholesale markets. We are proud to represent some of the finest estates in the business.
- NY/NJ/DC/PA: Sales to these markets are managed from our corporate headquarters and from satellite offices in Manhattan, Philadelphia and Washington DC. Sales are fulfilled from our state of the art distribution facility in Pinebrook, NJ.
- Winebow CT: Winebow expanded its distribution footprint in 2006 with the acquisition of the former Mid-State Distributors in Wallingford, CT. Mid-State was a well run organization with an excellent market reputation and a talented management team and staff, who continue to manage the business under Winebow’s ownership.
- Winebow MA: Winebow expanded again in 2006 with the acquisition of the Boston Wine Company. Boston Wine had been a partner and distributor of Winebow products for about 20 years, and offered a wine culture that we find so critical to our business. In addition to offering much of our imports portfolio, Boston Wine directly imports a unique and impressive roster of wines from Spain, France and Germany. Following the completion of the acquisition, the existing management team has continued to lead the Massachusetts business and the operations remain in Somerville, MA.
Click Wine Group:
Winebow expanded again in 2008 with the acquisition of the Click Wine Group. Click Wine Group is a leader in creating and developing innovative wine brands from around the world, and will advance our aim to be the leading super-premium import wine and specialty spirits supplier in the USA. Click’s unique marketing expertise and consumer driven approach to brand development has resulted in a growing portfolio of high quality brands. These wines include category leaders Fat Bastard from France, Root:1 from Chile, and Clean Slate from Germany. In addition, Click offers a strong sales presence in multi-unit retail and club channels which compliments Winebow’s strength in sales to independent retailers and on-premise accounts. Lastly, Click’s agency portfolio of fine wines from Australia enhances our WBI portfolio and allows us to represent another of the world’s major wine regions. More details on Click can be found on their web site at www.clickwinegroup.com
Click’s management team, headed by Peter Click, continues to lead the company from its headquarters in Seattle, WA.
Future Expansion:
Winebow continues to execute our “buy and build” strategy to compliment our steady organic growth. Our strong management group and financial position allow us to deliver value to importers, distributors and brand owners that are looking for a solid industry partner.
