1933-is
First shipment of Heineken arrives in the
U.S. in 1933 aboard the S. S. Statendam.
A far cry from today's container shipping.
In the 1940's, VMCO headquarters and
warehouse was in this building at 614
West 49th Street in New York City. If you
look closely, you can see Leo Van Munch
ing, Sr., right next to the left hand truck.
Would you believe a fork lift could raise
and move a stack of pallets this high?
The six pack at the beginning was a lot
different from the modern Heineken six
pack. Now it's compact, easy to handle
and without the cellophane bedding!
2
The Heineken case looked like this in the
old days but modern design changed the
graphics into a more attractive and con
temporary "look".
Early truck with
painted sides and back
photographed in De
troit at Universal Wine
Liquor Co. ware
house.
A Half Century
of Heineken in America
On December 19, 1933, the day after
the repeal of Prohibition (Eighteenth
Amendment), Leo Van Munching ar
rived in America as a representative of
the Heineken Breweries. He brought
with him his family and the first 50 cases
of Heineken Holland Beer. He also
brought a dream; to build an American
market for Heineken.
Today, that dream has been realized
as Heineken sells over 30 million cases a
year and is the only imported beer with
true national distribution. The brand
dominates the import category with
nearly a 40 percent share, and in fact,
outsells its four closest competitors com
bined. The story of this remarkable
brand, and the Van Munching family, are
one.
During the early
years, most import
drinkers were con
centrated in large
metropolitan areas
and primarily in
retail outlets fre
quented by people
who travelled over
seas, such as the
better hotels, finer
restaurants, and air
ports. This is where
Mr. Van Munching
focused his sales ac
tivities and slowly
the brand devel
oped a loyal follow-
ing. From New
York, marketing ex
panded into Chi
cago, Florida and
then to the West
Following World
War II, Heineken
was again being
shipped to the U.S.
This first post war
shipment on the
Nieuw Amsterdam
was met by, left to
right, Jim Connelly,
Leo Van Munching,
Sr., and his daugh
ter, Anne.
BeSneksm's Sist-Fak
