Carriage House Imports

What Carriage House Imports does

Carriage House Imports, Ltd. (trading as CHI) is a privately held, family-owned importer and distributor of wine and spirits headquartered at 150 Morris Avenue, Suite 300, Springfield, NJ. The company operates as a brand importer and manager, developing and incubating international wine and spirit brands for entry and growth in the U.S. market. It serves two core business segments — international suppliers/producers seeking U.S. market access and domestic wholesalers seeking differentiated imported brands — while its end products reach on- and off-premise consumers. The company is led by the Karp family, with Stephen (Steve) Karp as President & Chairman/CEO and Todd Karp as CEO, supported by a lean team of roughly 11 staff spanning finance, supply chain, sales, marketing, and brand development.

The company's portfolio centers on Italian sparkling wines and premium flavored vodkas: Verdi Spumante (imported from Canelli, Italy, introduced to the U.S. in 1993), its flavor extension Sparkletini (launched 2004 with Raspberry, later reaching #1 imported sparkling flavored SKU status by 2015), the newer It's FAB sparkling wine, and Figenza Mediterranean Fig and Pomela Pacific Island Pomelo flavored vodkas (both 6-times distilled). Its principal proprietary technical asset is a patented resealable gold cork closure used on Verdi Spumante and It's FAB, which allows consumers to reseal bottles and maintain carbonation for up to seven days.

Commercially, Carriage House operates within the U.S. alcohol three-tier system, generating revenue through the import and distribution of its brands via a network of 23+ major national and regional wholesalers, including RNDC, Southern Glazer's, Breakthru Beverage, and Empire. Beyond distribution, it provides supplier brands with a full service stack: finance and supply chain management (container consolidation, warehousing, transportation, forecasting, inventory management, state compliance) and sales and marketing (brand ambassador and loyalty programs, digital/e-commerce management, trade marketing, influencer management, and Nielsen/TABS category analytics). Pricing is not publicly disclosed. No external institutional or private equity investment, funding rounds, or parent structure is disclosed; the company appears bootstrapped and organically grown.

Name

Carriage House Imports

Legal name

Carriage House Imports, Ltd.

Website

https://chibrands.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Carriage House Imports is a family-owned importer and distributor of wine and spirits that develops and incubates international brands—including Verdi Spumante, Sparkletini, and Figenza vodka—for the U.S. market via a network of 23+ national and regional wholesalers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Wine and Spirits Import & Distribution

NAICS

Beer, Wine, and Distilled Alcoholic Beverage Merchant Wholesalers (4248), Wine and Distilled Alcoholic Beverage Merchant Wholesalers (424820)

SIC

Wholesale-Beer, Wine & Distilled Alcoholic Beverages (5180)

akta.pro primary industry

Alcohol Importers & Brand Owners (Wholesale) (CRAOAIAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Beer, Wine & Spirits Wholesale Distribution (CRAOAIAA)

Keywords

• Wine importation
• Spirits distribution
• Brand management
• Three-tier distribution
• Alcoholic beverages

Headquarters

HQ city

Springfield

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Brand Importing & Distribution: As importers of wine and spirits, Carriage House manages, develops, and incubates brands from across the globe. Revenue is generated through distribution relationships with wholesalers across the U.S., handling the three-tier system with services spanning sales, marketing, logistics, and administration.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels10 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Carriage House Imports is a family-owned importer and distributor of wine and spirits that manages, develops, and incubates international beverage brands for the U.S. market. The company operates through the U.S. alcohol three-tier distribution system, leveraging a network of 23+ national and regional wholesalers to deliver its portfolio of Italian sparkling wines and premium flavored vodkas. It provides end-to-end brand services including sales, marketing, logistics, finance, and administration.

Product overview

Carriage House Imports is a family-owned wine and spirit brand importer and management company that manages, develops, and incubates brands from across the globe. The company represents a portfolio of alcoholic beverage products including Italian sparkling wines (Verdi Spumante, It's FAB by Verdi, Sparkletini by Verdi) and premium flavored vodkas (Figenza Mediterranean Fig Flavored Vodka, Pomela Pacific Island Pomelo Flavored Vodka). Beyond product distribution, the company offers supplementary services in finance and supply chain management (container consolidation, warehousing, transportation, inventory management, state compliance) and sales and marketing (brand ambassador programs, digital marketing, market research, trade marketing management).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Verdi Spumante: Light, soft, and refreshing Italian sparkling wine imported from Canelli, Italy. Award-winning brand with patented resealable cork closure.
• It's FAB
• Sparkletini by Verdi
• Figenza Mediterranean Fig Flavored Vodka
• Pomela Pacific Island Pomelo Flavored Vodka

Products and services

• Verdi Spumante Light, soft, and refreshing Italian sparkling wine imported from Canelli, Italy. Award-winning brand introduced in the U.S. in 1993 with patented resealable cork closure and national distribution presence.
• It's FAB by Verdi

Quantifiable outcome

• #1 imported sparkling flavored SKU in the U.S. by 2015 for Sparkletini line

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

29 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major, regional and support.

• BoscacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1993Bosca Winery and Carriage House have a longstanding relationship dating back to 1993. Since 1831, Bosca has been sharing Italian sparkling brands with the world, with Carriage House proud to be part of this tradition.
• Waldemar BehncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1892Behn and Carriage House are both dedicated to innovating and producing the finest spirits. Behn, a family-owned company founded in 1892, has partnered with Carriage House to create exceptional spirits for the U.S. market.
• RNDC (Republic National Distributing Company)majorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorNational wine and spirits distributor partnership for wholesale distribution of Carriage House brands.
• Southern Glazer's Wine & SpiritsmajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMajor national wine and spirits distributor partnership for wholesale distribution of Carriage House brands.
• Breakthru BeveragemajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMulti-state wine and spirits distributor partnership for wholesale distribution of Carriage House brands.
• Empire DistributorsmajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional wine and spirits distributor partnership for wholesale distribution of Carriage House brands.
• Badger LiquorregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional spirits and wine distributor partnership for wholesale distribution.
• Fedway AssociatesregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional wine and spirits distributor partnership for wholesale distribution.
• General Wholesaler CompanyregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional wholesale distributor partnership.
• Goodman Beverage GroupregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional beverage distributor partnership.
• Frank Beverage GroupregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional beverage distributor partnership.
• Great Lakes Wine & SpiritsregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional wine and spirits distributor serving Great Lakes region.
• Alabama Crown DistributorsregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional wine and spirits distributor serving Alabama.
• Tennessee Crown DistributorsregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional wine and spirits distributor serving Tennessee.
• Superior Beverage GroupregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional beverage distributor partnership.
• Manhattan Beer DistributorsregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional beer and wine distributor serving New York metropolitan area.
• Heidelberg DistributingregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional wine, spirits and beer distributor partnership.
• Central DistributorsregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional distributor partnership.
• Lipman BrothersregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional wine and spirits distributor partnership.
• Origlio BeveragesregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional beverage distributor partnership.
• Fuhrer WholesaleregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional wholesale distributor partnership.
• Standard BeverageregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional beverage distributor partnership.
• Johnson BrothersregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional wine and spirits distributor partnership.
• M.S. WalkerregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional wine and spirits distributor serving Massachusetts.
• Central DistributingregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional distribution partnership.
• Med America Shippers AssociationsupportTechnology or IntegrationShipping and logistics partner for supply chain management services.
• Western Carriers Stateside WarehousingsupportTechnology or IntegrationWarehousing and logistics partner for domestic supply chain operations.
• NielsensupportTechnology or IntegrationMarket research and analytics partner providing wine category analytics.
• TABS AnalyticssupportTechnology or IntegrationWine category analytics partner for market research.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Kobrand Corporation: Privately held U.S. importer and marketer of wines and spirits representing international producers. Closely parallel to Carriage House in three-tier distribution, brand portfolio focus, and supplier-incubation orientation.
• Palm Bay International: Privately held, family-owned U.S. importer and marketer of wines and spirits across multiple international portfolios. Highly analogous business model to Carriage House — brand incubation via supplier partnerships distributed through the U.S. three-tier system.
• Deutsch Family Wine & Spirits: Family-owned U.S. importer of wines and spirits, building imported brand portfolios distributed through major wholesalers. Matches Carriage House's combination of supplier partnerships, brand development focus, and reliance on national distributors.
• Frederick Wildman & Sons: Family-owned importer of premium European wines and spirits to the U.S. market. Directly comparable to Carriage House in scale, family ownership, and brand-importing/wholesaler-distribution model.
• Winebow Group: U.S. importer and distributor of premium wines and spirits from around the world, operating through regional wholesaler networks. Comparable business model to Carriage House's brand importer + three-tier distribution approach.
• Vias Imports: U.S. importer specializing in Italian wines, distributing through major wholesalers. Comparable to Carriage House in Italian wine brand focus (Verdi/Bosca) and reliance on three-tier U.S. distribution.
• Maisons Marques & Domaines: U.S. importer of premium wines and spirits from European producers, distributed through major wholesalers. Mirrors Carriage House's brand-importing model with international producer partnerships.

Emerging players

• Skurnik Wines: Independent importer of artisanal wines from smaller European producers, distributed via three-tier system. Smaller-scale but directly comparable business model for niche brand importing.

Broad incumbents

• Pernod Ricard USA: U.S. arm of global spirits giant Pernod Ricard. Overlaps with Carriage House in importing and distributing wines and spirits, but operates at vastly larger scale across broad portfolios.
• Brown-Forman: Large publicly traded U.S. spirits and wine company, including import brands. Operates in the same wholesale/distribution ecosystem as Carriage House but at much greater scale and as a producer-owning incumbent.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Carriage House Imports