Retail/Wholesale: REID A. BROWN

Brown is the fourth generation of his family to run Brown Distributing, which serves more than 6,000 retailers and employs over 500 workers. His brother, Jason, serves as company vice president.

Founded in 1919, Brown Distributing began as a bottling operation for a popular cherry cola in Richmond operated by brothers Abraham and Isadore Brown. The company quickly evolved into a Pepsi bottler and distributor.

After Prohibition, Brown began distributing its first beer, a Maryland-brewed number called Wolf Beer. By 1936, the company was the Anheuser-Busch wholesaler for the Richmond-Petersburg area. For the second half of the 20th century, the company focused on beer distribution.

When Jason and Reid Brown entered the family business in 1999 and 2006, respectively, they decided the company would also begin distributing nonalcoholic drinks such as teas, water and juices.

Brown Distributing entered another new chapter in 2009 when it acquired craft beer distribution companies in Virginia and Florida. The National Beer Wholesalers Association and the Brewers Association named the company’s Florida operation Craft Beer Distributor of the Year in 2012.