Republic National Distributing Co., one of the nation's largest wine and spirits distributors, is cutting thousands of jobs and planning to shed some of its real estate ahead of the acquisition of its operations in 10 states and Washington, D.C., by a rival.
The Grand Prairie, Texas-based company told the Texas Workforce Commission it has agreed to sell its operations at facilities in Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Louisiana, Maryland, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia and D.C. to Reyes Beverage Co. for an undisclosed sum. The deal is expected to close in May, Reyes said, in a statement outlining the deal as its biggest acquisition to date.
"As a result of the pending Reyes transaction, the company currently expects that it will cease its operations of certain facilities," said Camille Davis, director of human resources at Republic, in the letter to the Texas Workforce Commission.
Republic noted that Reyes could offer some of the employees' job offers, but, without any guarantee of future employment, it spurred the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification in Texas. In all, Republic said it could cut 1,977 jobs in the state alone by June 21. By ceasing operations, the facilities once operated by Republic may also be up for grabs.
The Texas facilities expected to be impacted include the following:
- Austin: 164 workers at 2101 E. St. Elmo Road.
- Corpus Christi: 90 workers at 434 45th St.
- Grand Prairie: 689 employees at 1010 Isuzu Parkway.
- Houston: 588 workers at 8045 Northcourt Road.
- Lubbock: 74 employees at 507 Lubbock Business Park Blvd.
- Schertz: 372 workers at 6511 Tri-County Parkway.
Texas isn't the only state where Republic is slashing jobs, with 451 jobs being impacted in South Carolina, more than 1,000 jobs cut across four facilities in Florida and another 428 jobs slashed at an Ashland distribution hub in Virginia.
The status of properties in other states across won't likely be known until the deal closes.
In a statement to CoStar News, Reyes confirmed it is purchasing 11 markets from Republic and confirmed the acquisition is on track to close by the end of May, subject to regulatory approvals.
"As a next step in this process, [Republic] has issued WARN notices to employees in these markets," the Reyes spokesperson said, adding that this is a standard, legal practice in an acquisition and does not reflect the company's plans.
Reyes plans to run its wine and spirits business as "separate market units and will be welcoming many new employees who will bring local knowledge, customer and supplier relationships, and spirits and wine expertise — all of which are critical to continued growth in these states," the spokesperson added.
For Reyes, the acquisition adds four new states to its mix. It already has existing operations in Florida, Hawaii, Maryland, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia and D.C.
Outside of the acquisition, Republic is expected have a smaller U.S. footprint.