Beer, Wine, and Distilled Alcoholic Beverage Merchant Wholesalers

Businesses and organizations in the Beer, Wine, and Distilled Alcoholic Beverage Merchant Wholesalers industry (NAICS code 4248, part of the Wholesale Trade sector) received 4,761 PPP loans totaling $1.08B during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The average loan for this industry was $226,051 — above the national PPP average of approximately $67,000. This reflects the relatively large size of many businesses in this sector, which tend to have higher payroll costs and more employees.

96.8% of loans in this industry were forgiven — totaling $1.05B. To qualify for forgiveness, borrowers had to demonstrate that they maintained headcount and compensation levels and used at least 60% of loan proceeds for payroll expenses.

Notable recipients in this industry include NOR-CAL BEVERAGE., INC. of WEST SACRAMENTO, CA ($9,098,200); WINEBOW INC. of GLEN ALLEN, VA ($8,904,850); and PALM BAY INTERNATIONAL, INC of PORT WASHINGTON, NY ($5,812,500).

The loan amount distribution for this industry shows a more even spread across loan sizes, suggesting a mix of small and mid-sized businesses. Because borrower names are withheld for loans under $150,000, a substantial portion of recipients in this industry may not appear by name in this dataset.

As part of the broader Wholesale Trade sector — selling goods to retailers, industrial, commercial, institutional, or professional business users. — businesses in NAICS 4248 were particularly reliant on PPP assistance to bridge the gap between declining revenues and fixed overhead obligations during the shutdown period.