our story
7G Distributing was formed in June 2010 by the joint merger of Dale Lee Distributing of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and Kirchhoff Distributing of Dubuque, Iowa. Respective owners, Joe Lee and Ron Kirchhoff, joined their successful company synergies to create 7G Distributing, LLC. 7G continued its growth in January 2014 when Vanguard Distributing in Davenport, Iowa, became part of our 7G family. We are privileged to serve Eastern Iowa with the quality products of Anheuser-Busch InBev, Constellation Brands, and many others.
We proudly represent 45+ different suppliers and over 500 different brands. We presently service over 2,000 accounts and deliver to a footprint spanning 14 counties. Our merged company has a long and proud history of being Eastern Iowa's beverage leader by supplying these great products to consumers in our market. We currently sell over 5.6 million cases annually.
OUR HISTORY
Established in October 1954, Lee and Salkeld Distributing Company, Inc. consisted of just three employees and three trucks, selling 70,000 cases annually. In 1960, Dale Lee purchased Elmer Salkeld's portion of the business and renamed the company Dale Lee Distributing Company. The operation began expansion by adding employees, trucks, and brands. Joe Lee purchased the company from his parents in 1990 and continued its operation as Dale Lee Distributing Company. Dale Lee Distributing has always been a proud wholesaler of Anheuser-Busch products, along with a growing list of other suppliers. At the time of the 2010 merger, the company sold over 2.4 million cases of products annually.
Kirchhoff Distributing Company was founded in 1915 by Ron Kirchhoff's grandfather, Ed Kirchhoff, in Maquoketa, Iowa. Their first line of business was the harvest and storage of ice, which soon branched out to the manufacturing and selling of ice cream. At the end of the prohibition, Kirchhoff Distributing obtained its Wholesale Beer License, making it the oldest beer wholesaler in Iowa, representing various brewers. In 1957, Ed Kirchhoff forged a relationship with Anheuser-Busch, and from there, the relationship evolved continually to where we are today. Robert Kirchhoff acquired the family business in the early 1970s, and in 1990, Ron Kirchhoff Purchased the business from his father. In 2002, Kirchhoff Distributing Company built a new 57,000-square-foot facility on Chavenelle Road in Dubuque, Iowa. At the time of the 2010 merger, the company sold over 1.5 million cases of products annually.