April Member of the Month: Brown Distributing Co.
Each month, the Austin Young Chamber will highlight a member who is doing extraordinary work to strengthen our businesses, our community…or both! Showcasing their achievements is just one way we can put a spotlight on the talented, collaborative, and community-focused workforce we have here in Central Texas.
This month we recognize Corporate Member, Brown Distributing Co. (BDC).
April 2020: When COVID-19 started, our customers were scrambling to figure out what necessary precautions were needed, could they keep employees, how was their business going to survive and probably what to do with the inventory they had. We waited for government officials to give us the green light, allowing us to pick up and purchase our products back (at full price) from our on-premise accounts.
March 2021: Our on-premise team worked tirelessly to help accounts reopen safely, make sure they have plenty of fresh product and provided line cleaning for all their taps; as they welcome back their customers.
Everyone at BDC, from Sales to Marketing and Delivery to Warehouse, worked together to facilitate these tasks in less than a week, across all 7 counties and for nearly 2,000 customers
- Delivered 40,632 bottles of Essentia Water to Central Texas Food Bank on April 6th, 2021
- Delivered over 152,800 cans of Anheuser-Busch Emergency Drinking Water to local Communities after the Polar Vortex hit Texas in February 2021
- In 2020 the world changed, and we did what we do best.. Give back to those in need. Generally, we do this by working with our supplier partners to create a program that donates $/Case to charities. Here’s just some of what we did in the last 12 months:
- Budweiser & BDC to AllTogetherATX; May – July 2020 raised $10,000
- Michelob Ultra & BDC to American Heart Association; Aug. – Oct. 2020 raised $24,000
- Michelob Ultra & BDC to Central Texas Food Bank; Aug. – Oct. 2020 raised $26,000
- BASIC Seltzer & BDC to United Way; July – Sept. 2020 raised $10,000
- Karbach & BDC to HAAM; Aug. – Oct. 2020 raised $25,000
- Karbach & BDC to Southern Smoke Foundation; Sept. – Oct. 2020 raised $6,000
- Willie Nelson Virtual Picnic Program: With every ticket sold $1 goes to viewers charity of choice and BDC & its partners matched those dollars. (Michelob Ultra to Central Texas Food Bank = $5,000; Michelob Ultra to SIMS = $5,000; Budweiser to AllTogetherATX = $5,000; Budweiser to Six Square = $5,000; Love Street to HAAM = $5,000)
The average age of our Leadership Team is 33. With the help of our young professionals, we continue to grow with the industry and expand our portfolio with both local and national craft partners like Austin Eastciders & White Claw. We are always looking for team members who show talent drive, initiative and potential. The fact that 31% of employees at BDC have been here for 10 or more years is proof that our employees want to stick around. BDC also fosters talent from within by offering tuition reimbursement and flexible schedules for students; both providing betterment of not only our employees but the entire industry.
President J. Dan Brown founded the company that bears his name in 1962 at age 27. Since the beginning Mr. Brown has believed not just Marketing, but in the act of giving back to the community and creating friendships at every opportunity. In fact, our logo includes the line “Making Friends Since 1962.” Every single day each employee takes this message to heart as they meet with customers, support nonprofits or entertain at all our special events and venues.
When you give back to the local community, the amazing people of Austin are loyal to you. Our return on investment isn’t just about dollars and cents. The greatest ROI we get comes directly from these programs and the love that the Austin/Central Texas community has for Brown Distributing and our Brewery Partners. When you’re doing the right thing, the rewards are priceless!