StateWays Q www.stateways.com Q September/October 2014 6
StateWays
®
Editor- in-Chief
Richard Brandes
Tel: 212-353-3832
rbrandes@specialtyim.com
Digital Editor
Jeremy Nedelka
Tel: 203-855-8499 x213
jnedelka@specialtyim.com
Art Director
Adam Lane
Contributing Editors
Alia Akkam
Melissa Niksic
Kate Strandness
Senior Regional Sales Manager
Bruce Kostic
Tel: 203-855-8499, ext. 215
bkostic@specialtyim.com
Senior Regional Sales Manager
Mark Marcon
Tel: 248-761-6231
mmarcon@specialtyim.com
Senior Regional Sales Manager
Debbie Rittenberg
Tel: 215-860-0306
drittenberg@specialtyim.com
Senior Research Analyst
Adam Rogers
Vice President, Beverage
Amy Collins
acollins@epgmediallc.com
Production Manager
Cherri Perschmann
Tel: 763-383-4425
cperschmann@epgmediallc.com
Interested in List Rental, contact
Jim Scova
Tel: 914-368-1012
jscova@MeritDirect.com
Want Reprints, contact
Circulation and Audience
Development Manager
Debra Welter
Tel: 847-720-5614
dwelter@specialtyim.com
StateWays is published by
The Beverage Information Group,
a division of Specialty Information
Media
E D I T O R ' S N O T E
Lighting Out
for the Territory
I
n May 1990, I became editor of StateWays' sister publication Beverage Dynamics,
a beverage alcohol business magazine distributed to off-premise retailers nationwide. I
remember in the ensuing months writing my fi rst story on American whiskey, an opus on
light beer and a profi le of Bayway Liquors, in Elizabeth, NJ, which is still in operation. That
was followed by a piece on Champagne and a story on merchandising luxury spirits. It was a
little scary at fi rst, because I was a novice in most things beverage alcohol, but I continued to
learn. And I'm still learning to this day, more than 24 years later.
[In 1998, I also took over the duties of editing StateWays, and was quickly initiated into
the byzantine rules and regulations of the control states.]
It's not an original thought, but you turn around and two dozen years fl ash by, and you
look down at the half-price Metro card for seniors in your hand and realize that if you're ever
going to try something different, maybe now is the time.
But it's not easy to leave, because even though it's a job, with its hassles and boredom, it's
still fun and interesting the rest of the time. So, what to do?
In my case, I listened to my 27-year-old son, who nudged me gently in this direction by
saying, "If not now, then when?"
So, I'm saying good-bye to a pretty cool job, covering a pretty cool industry with lots of
pretty cool people making a decent living doing all sorts of things.
First, there are the control state executives and staff. I've spoken to scores of you through
the years, and with few exceptions, you've always gone out of your way to provide useful
information to us and genuinely cooperate in trying to describe and explain to us what it is
you do. For that, I'm grateful. Ditto for the NABCA and its hardworking staff, from Jim
Sgueo on down
Then, there are the wine and spirits suppliers. Though they are often busy, they have
generally made the time to provide key information to help us do the job of publicizing the
latest products and trends that help defi ne the industry.
I'm also grateful to the legions of public relations representatives, who are endlessly
cheerful in presenting their clients' many products and services, and who have many times
helped us to contact the right people for our stories.
Finally, I've been lucky to fi nd a group of writers who make it almost easy to be an editor
(notice I said "almost," guys and girls), and an art director, Adam Lane, who is an ace at
graphic design.
I'll still be hanging around for a couple of months to advise the next editor if he or she has
any questions. Then, in the words of the immortal Huck Finn: "I reckon I got to light out for
the territory." Maybe, if luck has it, I'll see some of you there.
Richard Brandes, Editor-in-Chief
