One of America’s oldest wine and liquor distributors has filed for bankruptcy after more than 125 years in business, blaming shifting drinking habits, soaring costs and an increasingly difficult wholesale market for its downfall.
Republic National Distributing Company, once the nation’s second-largest wine and spirits distributor, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Sunday and will begin an orderly wind down of its remaining operations.
The filing marks a stunning reversal for a company whose roots stretch back to 1898, surviving through Prohibition, multiple recessions and generations of change in the alcohol industry.
The company said the bankruptcy covers all remaining corporate and distribution operations that it still owns outside of its joint ventures.
‘This decision was not made lightly,’ Republic said in a statement announcing the bankruptcy.
‘Our industry has evolved, consumer preferences have shifted and the wholesale environment has grown increasingly challenging,’ read the statement.
According to court filings, Republic has between $500 million and $1 billion in assets, but liabilities estimated at between $1 billion and $10 billion. The filing lists more than 100,000 creditors.
The distributor said it chose a court-supervised Chapter 11 process to provide the flexibility ‘to continue working with parties that have expressed an interest in acquiring our other markets.’
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