Clare Rose warehouse, headquarters on market following sale to national liquor distributor

Longtime beer distributor Clare Rose Inc. has put its massive East Yaphank headquarters and distribution hub on the market after selling its business to a large national liquor and wine distributor, according to brokers selling the property.

Clare Rose, founded in Patchogue in 1936 as a small soda distributor, listed its nearly 270,000-square-foot commercial space at 100 Rose Executive Blvd. for sale earlier this month, and is seeking a commercial buyer, likely in the pharmaceutical or food and beverage industry, said executives with commercial brokerage Newmark. The corporate property, which sits on 34 acres just south of the Long Island Expressway, doesn't currently have an asking price, brokers said.

In March, national alcohol distributor Southern Glazer's Wine & Spirits of Miami announced that it entered an agreement to purchase Clare Rose for an undisclosed amount. 

"The building is definitely a very special building for Long Island," said Charles Tabone, executive vice president and managing director of Newmark's Long Island office. Tabone, who sold the land on which the headquarters was built to the family-run business 17 years ago, said the Rose family made many investments in the building that make it an ideal property for certain distribution businesses. 

The property features 34-foot high ceilings within the temperature-controlled warehousing space, 24 loading docks for trucks, nine drive-in doors, $3 million to $5 million worth of solar panels on its roof and nearly 30,000 square feet of office space, Tabone said.

"They didn't spare any money with the materials or design," Tabone said. 

Officials with the Rose family could not immediately be reached for comment Wednesday. 

"We couldn't be more pleased to transition our business to another multi-generational family company that shares our values, our commitment to people and our passion for building great brands," company CEO Sean Rose said in a statement this spring announcing the sale to Southern.

Tabone said given the property's size and amenities, "it's not for everybody, for sure," but there has already been interest from potential buyers both locally and in New Jersey. 

"We're targeting the pharma industry, we're targeting food and beverage, anything in the logistics world," he said, adding that the roughly 800 parking spaces on the property would be a selling point for any business with a fleet of trucks.

"We've had some nice interest, so far," he said. "It's not overwhelming, but it's good interest."

Southern Glazer's, which has several facilities along Underhill Boulevard in Syosset, where it employs around 1,000 workers, will continue to lease the property until 2028, according to marketing materials from Newmark.

Tabone said Southern is occupying the property while it "get its arms around running the company," but is likely to move operations to its other properties at the end of its lease term. 

Southern Glazer's, a family-owned business, has operations in 47 U.S. markets and Canada, according to its website.

In addition to Tabone, the site is also being marketed by Daniel Gazzola, managing director at Newmark.