RNDC heads towards to Illinois exit
Republic National Distributing Company (RNDC) is expecting to permanently close its Illinois facilities due to a lack of financing.
The company shared in a statement: “RNDC is currently contemplating changes to its Illinois operations in light of the fact that there currently is no financing available to continue RNDC’s Illinois operations.
“RNDC currently expects to permanently close its Illinois facilities, which will impact individuals employed at or reporting to our Illinois facilities.
“As part of that process, the company determined it was necessary to provide notice to affected associates, and as a result, has issued Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) notices to associates in Illinois in accordance with applicable legal requirements.
“At this time, there are no immediate changes to day-to-day operations, and RNDC remains focused on serving customers, supporting supplier partners, and meeting its commitments in the market. We are committed to communicating with associates and other stakeholders as information becomes available and can be appropriately shared.”
The anticipated end of its Illinois business comes nearly a year after the distributor pulled out of California, leaving many spirits producers in limbo.
Since then, RNDC’s operations have further eroded. It agreed to sell seven markets to Reyes Beverage Group in January, and added another five states to the deal in March. The deal completed earlier this month.
Illinois, which had been included in earlier negotiations, was excluded from the Reyes deal.
In April, RNDC agreed to sell its operations in all 17 US control states to Martignetti Companies. The transaction remains open, pending regulatory approval.
Kentucky and Indiana then followed in May, with Breakthru Beverage Group acquiring RNDC’s operations in these markets.
Most recently, RNDC closed three sites in Ohio, with more than 50 jobs affected by the move. Similar action was undertaken in Washington and Oregon, where more than 400 jobs were put at risk.
The Spirits Business has asked RNDC how many jobs are at risk from the Illinois closures.
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