DBI Beverage’s Pete Leesha to Retire February 24

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La Vergne, TN — DBI Beverage Inc. announced today that Pete Leesha, Vice President of Marketing, Specialty Brands, and Government Affairs, will retire effective February 24.

A Sacramento native, Pete attended Sacramento City College. After Sacramento City College, Pete served in the military before being hired as a night loader at Bell Distributing’s Stockton branch in 1976.

Pete quickly rose through the ranks, holding positions in merchandising, sales, and sales management. In 1994, Pete was promoted to Vice President and General Manager of Bell Distributing. In 1998, he was named Bell’s Executive Vice President.

Following Mesa Beverage’s 1998 acquisition of Bell Distributing, Pete joined Mesa as its Director of Marketing and Government Affairs. Pete continued in this role with DBI Beverage after DBI’s 2007 acquisition of Mesa Beverage as DBI’s Vice President of Marketing and Government Affairs.

With 41 years of experience, Pete’s served as a mentor to many in the industry. Pete is always willing to take time to share his insight, and his experience has been a valuable resource both for DBI Beverage and for DBI’s associates.

When asked what he will miss most in retirement, Pete said, “It’s all about the people.” Pete was less forthcoming on his future plans, but it is widely speculated that Pete Leesha’s own brand of lager may soon be on a shelf near you.

When asked by his peers to quickly summarize Pete, words like “friend,” “mentor” and “partner” were repeated over and over. DBI Beverage is grateful for Pete’s service to the company, and everyone at DBI wishes him all the best in his well-earned retirement.