Hammond Beverage Group (HBG) has struck a deal to acquire North East, Maryland-headquartered Northeast Beverage Corporation.
Financial terms of the deal, which is expected to close June 24, were not disclosed.
Northeast’s territory includes Cecil and Harford counties in the northeasternmost corner of the state, bringing HBG’s total Maryland coverage to seven counties. The deal includes all of Northeast’s assets and brand rights to the 1.4 million case equivalents the distributors sells annually. In April 2020, HBG entered the state with the acquisition of Upper Marlboro-based Buck Distributing, which includes the five counties south of Baltimore: Anne Arundel, Calvert, Charles, Prince George and St. Mary’s.
Northeast’s portfolio includes Molson Coors, Yuengling, Constellation Brands, Pabst, Heineken USA, Boston Beer, Gambrinus, and local craft offerings Heavy Seas, Independent Brewing and Fin City Brewing. It also sells Copa Di Vino wine and spirits from Dogfish Head and White Tiger Distillery.
“The acquisition of Northeast Distributing will enhance our position in Maryland,” HBG wrote. “Our strategy continues to be to build a network of superior beer distributors operated at the highest level with exceptional management.”
HBG was founded in 2019 and its wholesalers include Buck Distributing and Wrightsville, Pennsylvania-based Ace Distributing, in which chairman Gabriel Hammond acquired a 49% share in 2012, according to the company’s website. Its leadership team includes Hammond, CEO Jeffrey Reeder, who acquired Ace Distributing in 1989; president and COO Randy Golden, whose career includes stints at Molson Coors and Andrews Distributing; and CFO Dave Saxena.
HBG’s planned acquisition of Northeast is one of two middle tier deals announced this week. On Monday, the Reyes Beer Division announced a deal to acquire multi-state wholesaler Columbia Distributing’s business in California’s Sonoma and Marin counties. Reyes expanded its Maryland operations last year with the acquisition of Centreville-based G & G Distributors, which added about 700,000 case equivalents and 400 retailers to Reyes’ Premium Distributors.
Editor’s note: this story was updated at 2:40 p.m. ET on April 13 to include details about the sale provided by HBG.