Alliance Sales and Marketing was founded fifteen years ago in Charlotte, North Carolina. Since our inception in 2004, we’ve grown startups into household names, reinvigorated legacy brands, opened over a dozen offices nationwide, and given back to our local communities through our corporate volunteer program, Alliance Cares. Our passion and our people have powered our success.

To celebrate our anniversary, we wanted to reflect on our growth by sharing fifteen facts about Alliance from the last fifteen years:

1. In 1999, the idea for Alliance was sparked by a conversation among several industry professionals who thought there was room for innovation in the food brokerage space.
2. We opened our first office in 2004 in Charlotte, North Carolina. Today, our headquarters remain in the Queen City.
3. A few of our initial clients included Stonyfield Organic, Nature’s Path, and Nature’s Valley. Stonyfield was one of the first organic yogurts on grocery store shelves. Over time, they achieved record-setting growth—rising to the #3 brand nationally.
4. Our portfolio has always included a wealth of better-for-you brands. To support our natural and organic clients, we launched a sister company, Alliance Natural, dedicated to the channel in 2005.
5. Until 2006, when we expanded our coverage into other regions, we were known as Alliance South.
6. In 2007, we revolutionized the yogurt category once again when Chobani popularized Greek-style yogurt in America.
7. After onboarding a handful of clients initially, Alliance skyrocketed. We became the largest privately-owned broker operating on the east coast in 2008.
8. Talenti joined our team in 2009, allowing us to introduce their gelato and sorbet pints to the masses.
9. In 2010, we added more offices in the east to reach more headquarters and cover grocery and the natural / specialty channels.
10. In 2012, we headed west into a new frontier, the Rocky Mountains.
11. With the opening of our California office in 2013, we became the largest privately-owned broker in the nation.
12. To connect our clients with the best resources in retail, we launched our future-forward marketing agency in 2017.
13. The following year we modernized our visual identity, updating our brand to reflect our progressiveness in the industry.
14. In late 2018, the idea for Alliance Cares was formed to celebrate the volunteer efforts that our employees were already championing in their hometowns and beyond.
15. In the summer of 2019, our founder and CEO Scott Anderson’s two oldest daughters, Mariah and Eva, interned at the Charlotte office. This was an important milestone for our family-owned company as we look forward to the future of Alliance.

While we’ve achieved a lot over the years, we’re most proud of the categories we’ve shaken up with innovation, the clients we have grown, the retailer partnerships we’ve created, and the team we’ve built. We are Alliance.