John A. Terlato, President and Chief Operating Officer, Pacific Wine & Spirits, announced on Friday (17th November) the appointment of Ken Bill to Vice President of Sales and Marketing. Prior to joining Pacific, Ken was President of Republic Beverage Company in Houston, Texas."With more than 20 years of industry experience, Ken brings added depth, perspective and experience to our team," said Terlato. "Ken's extensive background in sales, marketing, human resources and financial management make him uniquely qualified to direct Pacific and further strengthen our position as the preeminent distributor of premium wines and spirits in the greater Chicago-area."Ken will be responsible for developing and executing the firm's business plan, overseeing the day-to-day operations of Pacific's 81-person sales force, and managing business relationships with its more than 160 suppliers.Previously, as President of Republic Beverage Company, Ken managed sales revenue of more than $200 million. Prior to joining Republic, Ken was vice president of sales and marketing for Tarrant Distributors. He also held a senior management position with the Julius Scheppe Company and various management positions with Joseph E. Seagram & Sons.Pacific Wine & Spirits is Chicago's leading distributor of premium wines and specialty spirits with more than 1.25 million cases sold in 1999 and is the largest supplier of wine for the on-premise trade in Illinois. Pacific was founded in 1946 and has experienced strong, consistent growth with its sales increasing two-fold every five years.Pacific Wine & Spirits is a unit of the Terlato Wine Group (TWG), a family holding company for the Terlato family's eleven independently operated companies. TWG is vertically integrated in the premium wine industry, with operations in wine production and importing, marketing, sales and distribution. In 1999, TWG's combined case sales of wine were over 3 million cases.