In April of 1933, Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the 21st Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. For the first time in fourteen years, the repeal of prohibition legalized the sale of alcoholic beverages.
Thirty-year-old Charlie Hill, a Prudential Life Insurance salesman, believed this to be the opportunity he was looking for. On May 9 of that year, he received one of the first wholesale beer permits issued by the State of Ohio. That was the beginning of Hill Distributing Company, over 75 years ago. Over the years, the wholesale beer business has changed greatly, from draft beer available only in 400-pound wooden kegs and bottles in returnable wooden cases to lightweight aluminum self-opening cans and twist-off non-returnable bottles. It is a transition that has involved not only years, but also vast technological advancements in high-speed packaging lines and ultimately the demise of the small local brewer.
Today, a handful of national brewers represent over 90% of the beer sold in the United States. Likewise, many beer wholesalers went the way of the small local brewer. In 1933, there were 28 wholesalers of beer in Columbus, Ohio; today only a handful remain. Attributing to the success of the few is the ability to recognize changes and trends within their marketplace and anticipate the end result. Charlie Hill had the foresight to initiate changes within his organization prior to the changes and trends becoming reality. When he passed away in the fall of 1991 at the age of 88, his organization was in place and ready to carry on the tradition. His son Chuck, who became President in 1969, diversified into wine in 1974, bottled water and new age beverages in 1980, and recognized the potential of the import beer market by acquiring the rights to distribute such beers as Corona, Heineken and Guinness in the 80s, long before they became the popular beers they are today. All generations have been very politically involved, along with being active in the industry with Chuck serving as WBWAO President in 1987 and a WBWAO Board Member for 22 years.
Although the wine business was sold in 1989 after achieving a respectable 25% share of the market, Hill Distributing still employs in excess of 90 employees and has gross sales of over 30 million dollars annually.
The third generation of the Hill family took over in June of 2005, when Chuck's daughter Cyndie became President and Chief Operating Officer. While attending The Ohio State University, Cyndie had the honor to work directly with The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Vern Riffe, for four years before graduating in 1991. Over her twenty five years in the industry, Cyndie has proudly worked all positions on her way to the top and still enjoys hauling kegs alongside coworkers during special events. Cyndie's sister Chrissie joined the company in 2004 and currently serves as Vice President of Sales. Under Cyndie's leadership, sales have continued to grow and the business has been recognized for excellence by many suppliers, as well as being named local Family Business of the Year in 2007. The fourth generation of the Hill family, Lee and Halee, ages 15 and 11 respectively, anxiously await their opportunity to continue the Hill legacy in the beer business.
