Southern Glazer’s contests NY lawsuit

Leading US drinks distribution company Southern Glazer’s has slammed what it calls “inaccurate accusations” of a lawsuit that claims the firm defrauded four New York bars over several years.

The four Albany, New York-based bars – The Barrel Saloon, The Capital Bistro, Public House 42 and Pearl Street Pub, which all have the same ownership – allege that a Southern Glazer’s salesman frequently issued last minute orders on behalf of the venues that were never requested or received.

The lawsuit, seeking US$1.25 million in damages, claims that the salesman either signed for the orders himself or forged signatures in order to meet targets, reports the Albany Times Union.

In total, the bars paid more than US$42,000 for wine and spirits that were never ordered or received, while an additional US$100,000 was charged to the bar owners’ account, which they did not pay.

The alleged fraudulent activity is said to have taken place between 2009 and July 2016.

But Southern Glazer’s, which was formed following the merger of Southern Wine & Spirits of America and Glazer’s in July this year, said the alleged wrongful conduct was committed by a single employee, who has now been sacked.

While Southern Wine & Spirits has operated in New York since 2004, Glazer’s has never distributed in the state. As such, the lawsuit cites both Southern Wine & Spirits of America and Southern Glazer’s as defendants.

“We at Southern Glazer’s of Upstate New York are deeply concerned by the inaccurate accusations made in a recent lawsuit filed in Albany,” a statement from the company reads. “We plan to vigorously defend the lawsuit.

“The lawsuit arises out of the alleged wrongful conduct of a single employee acting independently in violation of company policy and who has been terminated. We have a long and proud tradition of the highest ethical business practices and our nearly 2,000 employees in New York fulfil our expectations in this regard every day.

“We take these allegations very seriously and our customers can rest assured that we have rigorous policies, procedures and training in place. We will not have any further comments about the lawsuit but anticipate we will ultimately prevail.”

Southern Glazer’s has more than 20,000 employees and distributes more than 150 million cases of wine and spirits annually across 44 US markets, the District of Columbia, Canada, and the Caribbean.

Following its creation, Bacardi moved the majority of its distribution contracts to Southern Glazer’s.