About Us
Making friends is our business.
The year was 1965. Warren “Barney” Thomas, the very first franchisee of the ever-famous Mr. Softee’s ice-cream, set out on pursuing a new opportunity, leaving the ice cream industry behind. Barney took his passion for great products and promising businesses and purchased Brewery Products, an intriguing beer distributor and products business originally founded in 1933. Always looking to the future, Barney used a mission statement often to keep his goals for his new business at the forefront. “To be the marketing area leader in the sale and distribution of our products by consistently exceeding internal and external customer expectations.” Barney was running and operating his small business in a humble facility with only a few employees, a familiar story for many business owners in the ‘60’s. The popularity and success of Brewery Products began growing and with that came growth to the company’s needs. Shortly thereafter, in April of 1968, Barney’s big dreams of dominating the market with stellar service and products became such a reality that a newer and larger space was needed to continue.
All in the Family
After a life well lived, founder Barney Thomas gave one last “cheers” in life, passing in March of 2002. Members of Barney’s immediate family took on the task of keeping the business alive and growing. Hanging onto the core values that Barney taught, son-in-law John Keesee continued growing the business by adding additional brands and territory during his tenure as President of Brewery Products. In addition, Barney’s son-in-law Tom Keesee also jumped on board as Fleet Manager.
While the industry is indeed a fun one, growing the business to become an operation that helps all customers with all aspects of beer selling was a challenge. But with family by his side, John lead the team to introduce several new aspects of customer service to better serve the industry, including ordering, delivery, marketing, displays, and everything in between.
Soon, more family members jumped on board to keep the business thriving. John’s daughter, Wendy Keesee’s expertise is felt within many aspects of the business as she focuses on customer service, compliance, current technology trends, product knowledge, community involvement, and marketing. In other words, Wendy makes sure the business runs as smoothly as your beer.
Keeping things all the more relative, Wendy’s son Derek Siegel joined the team as Vice President, Operations (Warehouse and Operations), Financials and some HR. Derek is currently bringing the business into the modern day with a hands on approach to upgrading the company’s technical aspects and positioning them as an informational source to the consumer while continuing the improvement within the warehouse and delivery departments. Derek is now in his 14th year with the company in this capacity. His fresh take on operations have even lead to a greener environment, with Derek keeping recycling and environmental concerns at the forefront of every decision.
For more information on upcoming events, or to see how you can deliver fun to your next party or event, click here.
