The Brown History

Brown Distributing Company and the Brown family have a long and successful history with the greater Richmond area.  In 1919, brothers Abraham and Isadore Brown formed a soda-bottling business where they produced a cherry-flavored soft drink.  This growth caught the eye of Pepsi and a few years later were appointed as the Pepsi bottler for the Richmond-Petersburg area.  Today, the Brown family business serves approximately 2200 retailers throughout central Virginia and employs 170 people in the Greater Richmond area.

Like many current distributors, the end of Prohibition in 1933 was a major turning point in their company’s evolution.  The Browns quickly added beer to their soft-drink portfolio in 1933 when they began distributing a Baltimore-brewed beer called Wolf Beer.  As a result of the growth of their portfolio, the company grew to a fleet of six trucks and ten employees.  This growth was noticed by Anheuser-Busch, Inc and in 1936 the St. Louis-based brewer asked Abraham and Isadore Brown to distribute its Budweiser and Michelob draft beers.

Toward the end of the 1940’s, the two Brown brothers ended their partnership and in 1951 Abraham and his son Jacob formed Brown Distributing Company.  By 1956, the company had completely outgrown the West Main Street space and moved into a new location on Rhoadmiller road.  The 1960’s saw the introduction of a new Anheuser-Busch product, Busch beer.  In 1969, Brown sold its Pepsi Cola operation and a few years later, Jacob’s son, Larry Brown, joined the business.

In 1971, Brown Distributing moved again and built a facility at Byrdhill Road.  In the 1970’s, its fleet had grown to 16 trucks.  In 1977, Anheuser-Busch’s new Natural Light beer was added to the company’s portfolio and in 1978, Michelob Light was introduced.  Bud Light was introduced in 1982 and that same year the company acquired the distribution rights to the popular import, Heineken.

The Brown’s further expanded their business in 1984 by acquiring another distribution operation in West Palm Beach, FL.  Two years later, they celebrated 50 years of distributing Anheuser-Busch products.  A more recent expansion occurred in April of 2001 when the company purchased the Anheuser-Busch distribution operation in the Petersburg area.  Also in the early 2000’s, the company expanded it’s beer portfolio to include such brands as Magic Hat, Star Hill, Richbrau and other micro-brews.

Like many beer distributorships, Brown Distributing has worked diligently over the last several years to add non-alcohol products to its portfolio.  Products such as Monster Energy drinks, vitamin waters, various teas, etc. are all being incorporated into the company’s portfolio in both West Palm Beach and Richmond.

Larry Brown is President of Brown Distributing Company.  Larry’s older son, Jason, is the Vice President of the West Palm Beach operation, while Larry’s younger son, Reid, is Vice President of the Richmond operation.  Jason and Reid represent the fourth generation of Brown family ownership and management.  This Richmond-based, family-owned business has grown from a single cherry soda to a highly regarded beverage distribution business which enjoys combined sales (Richmond and West Palm Beach) of over 10 million cases annually representing approximately 1,500 different products/packages and serving over 4,500 customers.