The brand relocates to Bourbon Country
John Rich, the founder, majority owner and creative mind behind the Redneck Riviera portfolio of products announced the launch of Redneck Spirits Group during an event at his bar in Nashville this weekend. The privately held company will offer the popular Redneck Riviera and Granny Rich Reserve Whiskeys, and ready to drink Howdy Dew!, an 8% ABV flavored malt beverage. The new entity has partnered with Bonavita Beverage Group of Louisville, KY as its new operations, sales and marketing partner. This move will help streamline aspects of production and logistics means that the whiskey is now produced in the heartland of America. Folds of Honor will continue to receive a portion of every bottle sold. To date, Redneck Riviera bottle sales has helped fund over 100 scholarships to children and spouses of our fallen and disabled heroes.
“Our motto is, ‘Work Hard, Play Hard’ and that is what the team at Redneck Riviera has done,” says Rich, one half of the multi-platinum award winning country duo Big & Rich. “Since we launched in 2018, we have been honored with awards and deemed one of the fastest growing American whiskey brands on the market. Today, we are proud to announce a new chapter with the Redneck Spirits and Bonavita Beverage Group. It is an exciting time for the Redneck Riviera brand, and we are looking forward to building an even larger footprint with our new partners in Kentucky.”
Since the launch of Redneck Riviera Whiskey in 2018, the brand has made inroads at an unprecedented pace in a very competitive market. In less than 18 months, the brand has gone from a regional to a national brand in over 40 states. This is a testament to its quality, marketing strategy and passion of John Rich. The new partnership will allow the brand to go to the next level.
Leading the charge at Bonavita Beverage Group are some of the most talented beverage professionals in the industry with decades of success. Leading the sales efforts are three key players that have been with Rich since day one. Jarrett Catalani, Robert Manfredonia and Paul Szymanski have been instrumental in the rapid growth of the brand with trade and distributors and have achieved nationwide distribution in over 10,000 retail doors, many of which are key grocers and retailers with large footprints. Robert Manfredonia has over 25 years of experience with major entities like Russian Standard and Miller Coors and will continue to lead the corporate retail. Jarrett Catalani also has over 25 years of experience in building brands including Redneck Riviera, Russian Standard and Pilsner Urquell. His important role will continue to be building and managing sales teams and distributors. Paul Szymanski has 30 years of valuable experience and he will maintain the role of Central Regional Manager. Four additional seasoned professionals will join the sales team in regional roles April 1st.
Kevin Sachs, one of the principal founders of Bonavita Beverage Group, will provide strategic, managerial and financial oversight. He spent his early years with the global giant, Brown-Forman, primarily growing Jack Daniels in the international arena. For the past 15 years, Sachs has spent his time helping launch, build and sell craft spirits brands. These brands include Ocho Tequila, Angel’s Envy, Hemingway Rum and Bob Dylan’s inspired Heaven’s Door. With over 30 years in the business of overseeing remarkable growth in his ventures, Sachs and the Bonavita team are a welcome addition to the Redneck Riviera fold.
“We are thrilled to be part of the Redneck Riviera team as we help build the next chapters with John,” Sachs adds. “After one short meeting, we felt immediate chemistry and like-mindedness. What John and his team has accomplished by bringing a product into a competitive market in a unique fashion in a very short period of time is remarkable. RRW is becoming one of the great success stories in American whiskey and brand creation in recent years. The Bonavita Beverage Group was formed in 2020 for the express purpose of scaling craft brands. We knew we could help take Redneck Riviera to the next level. For us, this is not another “celebrity brand”, but a lifestyle brand with depth and roots that truly stands for something, and is the essence of John Rich – proudly American, patriotic, rugged, blue collar, work hard, play hard. The connection to Folds of Honor is sincere, authentic, humble and respectful.”
As always, Redneck Riviera will continue to source American made aspects in production including the finest whiskeys from the Midwest and the signature bottles and corks. We are proud to be “100% Made in America.”
