Todhunter International, Inc. produces alcoholic and nonalcoholic products, as well as by-products and related products. Its primary business is in rum, brandies, wines, and various other spirits, some of which it bottles itself–most notably under the Cruzan Rum and Porfidio Tequila labels–and some of which it sells to other beverage companies, who bottle it. In addition, it bottles various light alcoholic drinks, including wine coolers and cocktails, for other liquor companies.

1960s Beginnings in the Bahamas

Todhunter was founded in 1964 by A. Kenneth Pincourt, Jr., who into the 1990s remained the company’s chairman. As for its unusual name, there is undoubtedly a story behind it, but it is not one the company relates in its promotional literature. Established in the Bahamas, where it was able to operate tax-free, the company continued its ties with the island nation long after it moved to its U.S. mainland location in West Palm Beach, Florida.

During the 1970s Todhunter began to experience explosive growth, and in 1987 it signed a wine cooler production agreement with a giant in the spirits industry, Joseph E. Seagram & Sons, Inc. In 1989 it bought up all of the production facilities in Florida belonging to its biggest competitor and on October 13, 1992 made an initial public offering (IPO) of its stock. At that time the stock was traded on NASDAQ; five years later, in October 1997, the company would switch to the American Stock Exchange (AMEX).

Thus the early history of Todhunter, with the exception of its offshore founding, is not unlike that of most American companies. The production of rum, in which Todhunter participates, has an exotic reputation, however, due to its association with the West Indies and the rich history of that region. When Todhunter acquired the Cruzan Rum label in the mid-1990s, the company also acquired an intriguing history. Todhunter makes much of the latter in its promotional literature.