The US Distribution System Is Being Rebuilt. Most Brands Do Not Have a Plan for What Comes Next.

On 28 April 2026, Republic National Distributing Company signed letters of intent to sell its Oregon and Washington operations to Columbia Distributing, its Iowa, Maine, Mississippi, North Carolina and West Virginia operations to Martignetti Companies, and confirmed it is in advanced discussions with a separate buyer for the Plains States – a group that includes Colorado and Texas. It is also working through its joint venture partners in New York, Illinois, Kentucky, Indiana and Michigan on what comes next.

This follows RNDC’s March agreement to sell ten states and Washington DC to Reyes Beverage Group, a deal that closes by the end of May.

By the time all these transactions complete, RNDC – one of the most significant national spirits distributors in the United States for decades – will have been systematically dismantled in the space of roughly ninety days.

This is not a distribution story. It is an infrastructure story. And the brands that treat it as someone else’s problem are the ones that will feel it most.

What RNDC Actually Was