Built for the brands the system overlooks.
The traditional beverage industry is a closed loop. We started DISTRYB to give independent brands the distribution infrastructure they deserved. We aren't just leveling the playing field, we're changing the game.
The American beverage industry runs on relationships. For decades, those relationships have favored the same networks, the same distributors, and the same massive conglomerates.
Breaking in is hard. Breaking in as an independent or emerging brand is nearly impossible.
Most emerging brands can't get a distributor to return their calls. Without distribution, you can't get shelf space. Without shelf space, you can't build the sell-through data that makes a distributor take you seriously. It's a closed loop designed to protect the incumbents.
We built DISTRYB to break it. We started by distributing a portfolio of spirits brands ourselves — earning them real accounts and real shelf presence. Then, we built the software that lets any independent distributor do exactly the same thing.
Today, DISTRYB is one market for the whole trade — brands, distributors, brokers, and retailers on a single compliant platform. It puts every side on the same footing, so an independent competes on the same terms as a national conglomerate instead of against a system built to keep it out.
And it's all powered by AI — putting the data, automation, and market intelligence the conglomerates keep in-house into the hands of independents. That's how they finally compete with the giants.
We don't just build the road.
We drive on it too.
Ashton Bray
I spent my entire career in SaaS and customer engagement, most recently managing teams at Braze. When I looked at the beverage industry, I saw a supply chain stuck in the past. The three-tier system wasn't just inefficient; it was actively shutting out independent and emerging brands. The math just didn't work unless you were already on the inside.
I didn't want to just complain about the gatekeepers, so I got licensed. I founded DISTRYB in Decatur, Illinois, to distribute independent wine and spirits brands myself.
But getting a handful of brands on the shelf wasn't enough. We needed better infrastructure. That's why we built DISTRYB. It bridges the gap between my background in tech and my reality as a distributor. Today, it's the exact platform I wish existed when we started — a single ecosystem where the brands the system overlooks can finally get the data, visibility, and market access they deserve.
Founded in Decatur, IL
DISTRYB is a licensed Illinois distributor. We started with a specific focus: building the infrastructure that independent beverage brands have always lacked. Today, that exact same infrastructure is available to every brand, distributor, and retailer in the supply chain.
We launched in Illinois because it's our home base, but the platform is built for scale. As distributors and retailers in other states join the network, our catalog grows with them. Every new state is a compliance config, not a code deploy.
The end goal is a national ecosystem. We want any licensed brand to get to market, any distributor to manage their accounts, and any retailer to stock their shelves — all without switching tabs.
Ready to join the network?
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