Recession Hits Jack Daniel's: Layoffs at Brown-Forman

The liquor business is not, apparently, entirely recession-proof. Brown-Forman, the distiller of Jack Daniel's and Southern Comfort whiskeys, said today it would cut 250 jobs, mostly in the U.S. and Mexico, and offer early retirement to certain employees. The company is also slashing merit pay increases and shaving spending on travel and meetings in a bid to save as much as $25 million fiscal year 2010.

The company said last month its sales dipped 11 percent in the third quarter, thanks to the global economic slowdown.

The Louisville Courier-Journal is reporting that 57 workers in Lousville will be informed of their layoffs this week, and 51 will be taking early retirement. Brown-Forman employs 4,100 people worldwide.

Reader Comments Read all comments (3)

Add Your Thoughts

Comment Name State Select One AL AK AZ AR CA CO CT DE DC FL GA HI ID IL IN IA KS KY LA ME MD MA MI MN MS MO MT NE NV NH NJ NM NY NC ND OH OK OR PA RI SC SD TN TX UT VT VA WA WV WI WY International Email

Please enter the two words below into the text field underneath the image.

Incorrect please try again

Enter the words above: Enter the numbers you hear:

Your comment will be posted immediately, unless it is spam or contains profanity. For more information, please see our Comments FAQ.