Western Distributing Company

Western Distributing Company was established right after prohibition and has been family-owned and operated since its inception.
Western’s history can be traced back to the post-repeal days of 1933 when the founder and owner, Guido Mapelli, picked up beer in a trailer from Golden and sold the product on the streets of downtown Denver.

As the original Coors distributor, Western was off to a great start. Leadership of the company was passed down through the family and with each generation the company grew. Presently, Vieri Gaines, Guido’s grandson, is the President and Chief Executive Officer. Back in 1977, V Gaines, CEO, decided that he wanted control of the delivery of his liquor, wine, and beer which he ordered and wholesaled.

He purchased 6 brand new Peterbilts of the prettiest blue, highest horsepower, and the with the most driver luxuries. These were the best of the best along with the trailers he bought to match the trucks. Next he hired 6 of the best drivers, team and solo. He paid them not by the mile but by a weekly salary. Their job was to pick up the orders and bring them back to the warehouse as quickly as possible. He maintained a low inventory to keep his costs down. Then one day V decided to load some beans on an outbound truck that usually went out empty and was amazed that the truck actually became a profit center versus a cost center. From there Gaines grew the business by starting to haul meat, beer, and produce out of town and haul his liquor back into town.

The fleet grew over the years and in 1992 United States Armored Co. was purchased and added to the fleet by diversifing and working in other fields besides the reefer field. The fleet continued to grow at a rate of 15% a year but with the reputation that someone had to die at Western to a job there. It was tough – drivers had to have clean backgrounds and many years of experience just to put in an application. Then back in 1996 the fleet had another opportunity to grow by purchasing another highly regarded company called Frontier Produce. Those 36 trucks gave Western well over 100 trucks It opened our eyes to owner/operators, and most important of all, gave us another great group of highly skilled and safe drivers.

The fleet continues to grow at about 15% a year and is expanding into different fields to ensure it’s stability by not letting one market or another bring it down. The truckline is only one of the successful profit centers of Western Dist. who currently has 18 profit centers.

Refrigerated
Our refrigerated division is comprised of 145+ trucks pulling refrigerated freight across a 48-state region, and is the largest part of the fleet. WDTC has prided itself by supplying its customers with the best service and on-time deliveries, since it’s inception in 1977. As a Refrigerated Carrier we work with perishable products that have a limited shelf life and there is no time to loose in transit from the fields, to the production plant, to the shelf where the customer buys it. New technology has actually given us the ability to extend shelf life and that is why Western invests in it so heavily with our modern reefers. First class equipment, safety, sanitary, air ride, proper refrigeration, and driver care are all a necessity. Dispatchers are very thorough with each and every load regardless of how many stops or pickups they have. Load communication is done with driver on the phone personally to ensure their instructions are clear and concise. Call, Confirm, and Communication are the 3 keys points of this business. They are there for you 24/7. We also work with several other truckers of various sizes and can handle any volume you may swing our way by utilizing our partners when needed. Let us do the shopping for you and get all your hauling done in one phone call!

Taking care of our drivers (this is the key) by providing the drivers with the best equipment in the industry we retain and recruit some of the best drivers out there. In turn, our drivers take care of our customers, the loads, and the company as it was their very own. Western is a family business and each driver is spoken to on a personal basis – not through a computer. Each truck is assigned to a driver, no slip seating. Drivers are even allowed to pick options on their new truck when ordering so each truck has its own personality, just like our drivers. This instills pride, performance and professionalism in our drivers and in the service they provide our customers. Our service level is second to none!

Specialty Services
We are always constantly adjusting our equipment to customers needs with all forms of hauling and in any state. We have a tremendously talented group of drivers and staff that have experience in many fields here.

United States Armored Company (USAC), is a division of Western Distributing Transportation Corp. USAC was acquired in 1992 with 11 power units and has now grown to over 40 units to date. This division transports cargo that requires safeguarding in transit. The tractors are fully armored and staffed with several armed driver/guards. All personnel are weapons trained and certified as well as through extensive background checks are done on all staff. All trucks are teams and we can overnight product almost anywhere in the United States . All Equipment is armored to meet customer specs and protect driver/guards as well as cargo. We also have various sizes of trailers that are smaller in height and length to get into those tight vaults or small dock spaces. We also have reefers for secure products that require specific temperature requirements and 24 hour reporting/monitoring of that product as well. USAC has cargo insurance in place to satisfy any coverage necessary. We move cargo for all divisions of the government and were awarded to move several of the governments banks over the years. If it must be secure in transit, any amount, anywhere, (48 states/Canada) USAC can make it happen! We would tell you more about what we can do but IT’S CONFIDENTIAL!!