Large wine & spirits distributor to close sites, cuts 100s of jobs

Most consumers know the alcohol brands they buy far better than the companies that move those bottles from suppliers to stores, bars, restaurants, and venues.

But those behind-the-scenes distributors play a major role in what you see on the retail shelves.

They warehouse products, transport cases, manage supplier relationships, and help get wine, spirits, and other beverages into places where consumers buy them.

Now, one of the biggest names in that business is cutting its footprint.

Republic National Distributing Company (RNDC), one of the bigger names in alcohol distribution, has issued a new Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) notice in Illinois, signaling plans to close two facilities and cut hundreds of jobs.

The move adds another chapter to a difficult stretch for the major wine and spirits distributor, which has already been reshaping operations amid industry pressure, supplier changes, and a major transaction with Reyes Beverage Group.

RNDC to close two Illinois facilities, cut 280 jobs

RNDC expects to permanently close facilities in Niles and Romeoville, Illinois, according to a WARN notice reviewed by TheStreet.

The affected locations are the company’s facilities at 6600 West Howard Street in Niles and 1301 N. Abbott Road in Romeoville.

The company said there are 165 affected employees at the Niles facility and 100 affected employees at the Romeoville facility.

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The notice also lists 15 remote employees who report to the facilities.

That brings the total number of laid-off workers to 280.

RNDC said it expects to terminate employees at or reporting to the facilities on or within 14 days after Aug. 14, 2026.

The company said it had been exploring strategic alternatives to secure capital and avoid liquidation of its Illinois operations.

But the notice says there is currently no financing available to continue operations at the facilities.

“As a result of this process and the Company’s financial circumstances, the Company currently expects to permanently close the Facilities and terminate the employment of all employees located at or reporting to the Facilities,” the WARN notice said.

RNDC cuts follow earlier layoff warnings

The new Illinois WARN notice follows TheStreet's previous reporting that RNDC had issued a wave of conditional WARN notices tied to a pending transaction with Reyes Beverage Group.

Those earlier filings totaled 2,774 potentially affected workers across several states, including Florida, Virginia, South Carolina, Colorado, Arizona, and Maryland.

At the time, RNDC said the notices were part of the transition process and did not automatically represent final employment decisions.

The company said some affected workers could transition to Reyes, remain with RNDC temporarily, or move into retained roles depending on final staffing decisions.

The Illinois notice is different because it points directly to RNDC’s financial circumstances and expected facility closures.

It also comes after RNDC and Reyes Beverage Group said they closed their transaction involving 11 RNDC markets transitioning to Reyes.

Those markets included Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Louisiana, Maryland, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. 

RNDC said the transaction in Hawaii was still subject to remaining regulatory approvals.

Illinois was not listed among the RNDC markets included in that transaction.

That makes the Illinois notice a fresh development in RNDC’s broader restructuring.

Alcohol distributor faces pressure after major industry shift

RNDC describes itself as a leading beverage alcohol distributor specializing in wine and spirits, operating in the middle tier of the alcohol industry’s three-tier system.

In simple terms, producers make alcohol, distributors move and sell it into the market, and retailers, bars, restaurants, and other outlets sell it to consumers.

Companies like RNDC play a major role in whether a bottle of wine, tequila, whiskey, or other alcohol brand reaches a store shelf or restaurant menu.

But the alcohol distribution industry has been changing.

Large distributors have been consolidating, suppliers have shifted partnerships, and consumer drinking habits have become harder to predict.

RNDC has already faced a turbulent stretch. The company exited California in 2025, a major alcohol market, and has continued to reshape its footprint.

The Reyes transaction also marked a major shift in the industry.

Reyes Beverage Group said its acquisition of RNDC operations was its largest to date, extending its footprint to 16 states.

The company said the deal added about 5,200 employees, more than 135,000 new customers, and roughly 38 million annual cases to its operations.

For RNDC, the Illinois notice shows the company is still cutting back in some markets even after the Reyes deal closed.

The WARN filing notes that RNDC explored options to secure capital for its Illinois operations but now expects to close the Niles and Romeoville facilities and end employment for workers at or reporting to them.

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