Transforming the Beverage Alcohol Industry

Todd Morillo, Director of Sales Technology, Eagle Rock Distributing Company

Todd Morillo is a beverage-alcohol industry leader driving change through sales technology and operational innovation. With nearly two decades at Eagle Rock Distributing Company, he has led territory teams, retail integrations, and sales tech strategy, helping modernize distribution, improve profitability, and push the industry forward with a sharp, growth-driven mindset.

The beverage alcohol business is a widely misunderstood and often overlooked partner to the American consumer. Even for those who have chosen to follow the current trend of less     alcohol - less often, the wholesalers that supply your favorite pours and pints are also stocking your shelves with ionized waters, functional beverages, energy drinks, and a host of other health-conscious offerings. But portfolio expansion is not the only shift visible in this industry. Unsurprisingly, AI is finally making its way to Bev-Alc distribution.

Industry Challenges and the Need for Innovation

Once deemed “recession-proof” by outsiders, Bev-Alc has weathered a number of recent storms driven by politics, consumer demand, and the introduction of THC products across the country. Now, more than ever, words like “adaptation” and “innovation” dominate meeting rooms, fueling curiosity about how AI might be able to bring logic to madness.

Largely controlled by their dominant supplier, distributors have often been over-reliant on the software and technology provided to them by said suppliers. In truth, there simply hasn’t been a pressing need for exploration. After all, this is a business built on people and the relationships they build with retailers. It has been very difficult for wholesalers to imagine a world of automation, algorithms, and predictive ordering. After all, automation belongs only in the warehouse… right?

“The Bev-Alc industry is long overdue for this massive disruption, and a paradigm shift in traditional methodologies is exactly what’s needed.”

Bev-Alc execs are suddenly taking this question more seriously and often prompting additional ones: What does it mean for our sales team if they no longer take orders? Will they be more efficient? Can they take on additional accounts? What about our Admin staff? Can we automate a few of their tasks? These are challenging ideas, and the solutions will be different for everyone. Even more sensitive: Will we have to let people go? How soon will we see any ROI? How do we even get started?

Embracing AI: A Paradigm Shift

If you find yourself stuck on this question: “Should we even consider AI for our team?”  the answer I offer is a very emphatic “YES.” The Bev-Alc industry is long overdue for this massive disruption, and a paradigm shift in traditional methodologies is exactly what’s needed. As for how to get started: start small.

The AI landscape has quickly become very complex and overwhelming. Anyone in the IT space has likely been contacted by dozens of AI companies promising the “newest and best solution, with agentic elements powered by LLMs and proprietary algorithms.” Many are still struggling to even understand these terms, let alone finding a way to introduce them. But this is not the starting point for most wholesalers in this space. Adopt the “crawl before we walk” mentality and begin with simple discussions with smaller teams.

Ask small groups or individuals if they use some of the usual suspects in their everyday lives. Are they familiar with ChatGPT, Gemini, CoPilot, etc.? Even in a playful sense, these discussions can spark bigger ideas. Find your early adopters willing to take this journey with you. And as for “starting small,” challenge a team member who might be great at PPT presentations to draft the next one using AI. Encourage them to deviate from the standard company template the team has seen a million times and bring new visuals and content to the group. Even smaller, have an individual generate simple emails using one of the engines above.

Quick disclaimer: You should absolutely keep all sensitive information and proprietary data out of these platforms until you obtain an enterprise license for such. These are easy to obtain and usually granted on a per-user basis. For example, a Microsoft house should seek a licensed CoPilot agreement for a small group of early adopters.

The introduction of AI into the Beverage Alcohol business has strong momentum, so it's best not to delay any longer. This industry is transforming at a pace never seen before, and we all need new running shoes. Starting simple and small will make ROI more transparent, and small wins inspire bigger change. I will close with a familiar quote stolen from a co-worker: “We cannot change the direction of the wind, but we can adjust the sails.”