Back in July, the Republic National Distributing Company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Now for many northern Nevada breweries, the opportunity to expand outside of the state is closed.
Bandwidth for national alcohol distribution is shrinking with the loss of a major wholesaler.
There's no room for 10 Torr's product, so now they're stuck somewhere in the middle.
“We really focus on finding the middle tier distributors that are out there, taking it state-by-state,” says Jamie Evans, CEO of 10 Torr.
Chief marketing officer Trevor Leppak says the game has changed a lot over the years, forcing the onus on them.
“It used to be the other way around where the distributors were actively, seeking out new accounts,” Leppak says, “you know, large chain distribution or off premise accounts for you. Now, that's mostly put on to the supplier.”
Even if they find a distributor with reach beyond Nevada, many of them are stretched so thin that suppliers will need to build their own brands.
“That's done via boots on the ground, via social media,” Evans says. “Just getting articles in, you know, publications that people are actually reading will help us get there. But it's an everyday battle."
10 Torr, or any other supplier, legally cannot sell directly to consumers because of the three-tier system.
After prohibition ended in 1933, states wanted to stop distilleries and breweries from aggressively promoting and undercutting the market, as was common in the early 20th century. The three-tier system requires suppliers to go through distributors to get their products on store shelves.
“there's got to be a better way for us as a supplier to get to our consumer,” Evans says.
Like every other business, 10 Torr's goal is to grow and expand. Evans says the path forward will be rough, but the national demand is already there.
“We have people emailing, calling. We've got big chains in Florida asking us to ship their products or ship our product to them. We can't do that,” she says.
