Why This Matters to Distributors: The case shows the compliance risks distributors face when employees or third parties provide payments, gifts or other benefits to influence customer purchasing decisions. Southern Glazer’s admitted responsibility for employee conduct that federal authorities said included improper payments to alcohol retailer employees and the use of third-party vendors and false invoices to conceal the activity.
Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits has agreed to pay $12.5 million and strengthen its compliance controls to resolve a federal investigation into years of improper payments and benefits provided to employees of alcohol retailers.
The nationwide wine and spirits distributor entered into a non-prosecution agreement with federal prosecutors, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California announced Sept. 10.
Southern Glazer’s admitted and acknowledged responsibility for acts committed by company employees, according to a statement of facts accompanying the agreement.
Federal authorities said Southern Glazer’s executives and employees provided improper payments and benefits to employees of alcohol retailers, including chain grocery stores, in connection with the promotion, purchase, maintenance and placement of products distributed by the company.
The benefits included cash payments, prepaid gift cards, flights, golf trips, resort stays and luxury goods, according to the Justice Department. Employees used third-party vendors and false invoices to conceal the payments.
Several California-based Southern Glazer’s executives, including several vice presidents, were directly involved in the conduct and participated in falsifying documents, federal prosecutors said.
The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau described the conduct as commercial bribery and said Southern Glazer’s employees bribed retail employees to induce them to purchase alcohol distributed by the company.
Under the agreement, Southern Glazer’s will pay $12.5 million to the U.S. government. The company also agreed to strengthen compliance with federal and state laws prohibiting bribery and improper payments and continue cooperating with the government in related criminal prosecutions, including cases involving current or former employees. The agreement runs for two years.
Southern Glazer’s itself was not criminally charged. Under the non-prosecution agreement, federal prosecutors agreed not to prosecute the company for the conduct covered by the agreement if Southern Glazer’s fulfills its obligations.
TTB also agreed to take no action against Southern Glazer’s for the conduct covered by the investigation. The company said the investigation primarily concerned activities that occurred years ago and involved former employees who circumvented its compliance controls and policies, including through fraudulent documentation submitted using third parties.
Southern Glazer’s said it cooperated fully with authorities and accepted responsibility for the conduct and compliance failures acknowledged in the agreement.
“This conduct does not reflect Southern Glazer’s values, culture, or standards and it will not be tolerated,” CEO Wayne Chaplin said.
The federal government credited Southern Glazer’s with making significant changes to its compliance program.
According to the company and the federal agreement, Southern Glazer’s increased and reorganized compliance staff, adopted new policies and procedures, expanded monitoring and auditing, and strengthened internal enforcement.
The investigation was conducted jointly by TTB and IRS Criminal Investigation with support from the Treasury Executive Office for Asset Forfeiture, according to the Justice Department.
TTB said the case demonstrates the potential liability distributors face not only for actions taken directly by employees but also for illegal conduct carried out on their behalf by third parties.
The investigation centered on practices governed by federal alcohol trade regulations intended to preserve the independence of wholesalers and retailers. Federal law prohibits certain commercial bribery practices that threaten the independence of alcohol trade buyers.
Southern Glazer’s is the largest U.S. distributor of wine and spirits, according to the federal statement of facts, and employs more than 24,000 people nationwide.
The family-owned company said it has operations in 47 U.S. markets and Canada, along with brokerage operations in the Caribbean and Central and South America. Southern Glazer’s plans to adopt the Southern Glazer’s Beverage Company name companywide in 2027.
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