Today we’d like to introduce you to Steven Villani.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I have been in the beer business my entire adult life. As a Northeastern student I worked my coops at the Anheuser-Busch owned distributor in Medford, MA. I got on full time with AB upon graduation and spent a 17 year career with Anheauser-Busch working for them in seven different states including their headquarters in St. Louis. In early 2006 I was recruited by Brown Distributing Company to become their VP and General Manager. Brown is a family owned distributor selling Anheuser-Busch brands in Palm Beach County. While I enjoyed working for Brown very much, my family was unhappy in Florida so I started looking for business opportunities back home in MA. I wanted to remain in the beer business because that is what I loved and was fortunate enough to find a small European Beer Importer for sale based out of Santa Barbara, CA. Myself and my business partner, Cliff Lusso, raised the funds to purchase the business, closed in December of 2007 and moved the business to Middleton, MA in June 2008. When we started it was just the two of us selling beer to 36 distributors located in 32 states. I did the sales and travel and Cliff managed the operations and finances back home. Over the last ten years we’ve accomplished quite a bit. We now have 25 employees, we sell beer to 110 distributors in all 50 states plus the USVI, have purchased our own warehouse and office space and have tripled the revenues of the company.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Upon purchasing the company in late 2007 the country experienced the worst recession in 80 years. Many of our competitors sold or merged with bigger players. We were highly leveraged and had a bank covenant to make each quarter, so decided to expand distribution to more US markets to stay ahead. Thank goodness this strategy worked and the company thrived from 2010 to 2014.
American craft beer has become increasingly popular over the last 10 years and the movement to drink and eat local is extremely difficult to compete with given that our beer is brewed in Europe. Our direction to combat the “Local” craze is to become proficient at selling national chains. Chains have a more national scope and that fits in perfectly with our competencies. The beer market in the US is extremely crowded and competitive so we are continuously re-inventing ourselves to meet the needs of the marketplace.
Please tell us about Global Beer Network.
Global Beer Network is a European beer importer selling predominantly Belgian Beer to distributors throughout the country. We act as the inventory, sales and marketing arm for 7 award winning Belgian Brewers, one Trappist Brewery from Rome, an award winning brewery in Prague and most recently a brewery from Germany. The brewers rely on us to represent them in this country. All sales, marketing, operations and licensing of these brands in the United States is performed by
GBN. GBN is known most for our world class Belgian Beer Line-up. We have all styles from lagers, to Wit Beers, Triples, Strong Dark Ales, Sours and Lambic. I am extremely proud that over the last ten years this company has grown every year in such a difficult and competitive marketplace. I credit this growth to the passionate professional sales team that we employ.
What makes GBN different is our people. Most importers of our size rotate people in and out. The GBN team is full of bright, passionate, driven professionals who know how to get the job done.
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
I was an athlete as a kid. My evenings were spent at the field playing stick ball or football or anything that drove us to compete. Both myself and my business partner grew up in Revere, MA. My family came from modest means but me and my brother never felt that we needed for anything. My favorite memories as a child were playing at the field with my friends who by the way are still my best friends today.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.Globalbeer.com
- Instagram: Instagram.com/globalbeer
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/GlobalBeerNetwork
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