J. Michael Ryan says it is a bittersweet day. His family has had this beer business for 64 years, and he says he tried to keep it in the family, but it just didn't work out.
The next best thing was to go with Fabiano Brothers.
"They've built a large warehouse and really invested in the future. They've already bought out some smaller wholesalers and basically the economics of the business is heading toward consolidation," Ryan said.
Ryan says the operations and marketing will move north to Fabiano Brothers' new state-of-the-art building in Bay County's Monitor Township.
When it comes to servicing accounts and delivering and selling in Genesee and Lapeer counties, Ryan says that will not change.
Ryan says the building will stay in his family and he doesn't want it to stay empty. He says he's working on keeping the building filled.
The sale should be complete before the holidays. Close to 100 employees work at Tom Ryan Distributing. It will be up to Fabiano Brothers to fill the positions they need.
"They're going to be looking at all of our employees here to see how it fits into their organization," Ryan said.
"The positions that we have open will be filled by Tom Ryan people," said Fabiano Brothers President James Fabiano.
