Marvin L. Sands (1924 – August 28, 1999) was an American businessman, and the founder and CEO of

Constellation Brands Constellation Brands, Inc. is an American producer and marketer of beer, wine, and spirits. A ''Fortune'' 500 company, Constellation is the largest beer import company in the US, measured by sales, and has the third-largest market share (7.4 pe ...

, a

Fortune 500 The ''Fortune'' 500 is an annual list compiled and published by ''Fortune (magazine), Fortune'' magazine that ranks 500 of the largest United States Joint-stock company#Closely held corporations and publicly traded corporations, corporations by ...

beer, wine and spirits company.

Early life

Marvin Sands was the son of Mordecai E. Sands, who was a partner in a winery in

Long Island City Long Island City (LIC) is a neighborhood within the New York City borough of Queens. It is bordered by Astoria to the north; the East River to the west; Sunnyside to the east; and Newtown Creek, which separates Queens from Greenpoint, Brook ...

, Queens, New York since 1932. He was of Jewish descent. Sands earned a bachelor's degree from the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC, UNC–Chapel Hill, or simply Carolina) is a public university, public research university in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States. Chartered in 1789, the university first began enrolli ...

, and served as an ensign in the

US Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

during World War II.

Career

Sands founded the Canandaigua Wine Company in 1945 at age 21. Sands tried to establish a brand, and was unsuccessful with King Solomon kosher wine and an eponymous Sands brand. In 1954 he produced a "flaming-red blend of dessert wine" called Richard's Wild Irish Rose, named after his son Richard, and this grew to become more than 90% of their sales in the 1960s. By 1980, annual sales topped $50 million. The company was renamed Constellation Brands in 2000. In 1987, he acquired the Manischewitz Wine Company and in 1988, received

kosher (also or , ) is a set of dietary laws dealing with the foods that Jewish people are permitted to eat and how those foods must be prepared according to Jewish law. Food that may be consumed is deemed kosher ( in English, ), from the Ashke ...

certification for the brand from the

Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America The Orthodox Union (abbreviated OU) is one of the largest Orthodox Judaism, Orthodox Jewish organizations in the United States. Founded in 1898, the OU supports a network of synagogues, National Conference of Synagogue Youth, youth programs, Jew ...

. It has acquired several companies including

Robert Mondavi Robert Gerald Mondavi (June 18, 1913 – May 16, 2008) was an American winemaker. His technical and marketing strategies brought worldwide recognition for the wines of the Napa Valley in California. From an early period, Mondavi promoted label ...

wine and Svedka vodka. Sands was the company's CEO from its inception until 1993, when he was succeeded by his son Richard Sands.

Personal life

Sands lived in

Canandaigua Canandaigua () is a city in Ontario County, New York, United States. Its population was 10,576 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Ontario County; some administrative offices are at the county complex in the adjacent town of Hopewell. ...

, New York with his wife Marilyn "Mickey" Sands. He had two sons, Richard Sands and Robert Sands; and a daughter Laurie Sands Stern (died 1995). He died on August 28, 1999; services were held at Temple B'rith Kodesh in

Rochester, New York Rochester is a city in and the county seat, seat of government of Monroe County, New York, United States. It is the List of municipalities in New York, fourth-most populous city and 10th most-populated municipality in New York, with a populati ...

. The Constellation Brands – Marvin Sands Performing Arts Center is named in his honor.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sands, Marvin 1924 births People from Canandaigua, New York 1999 deaths American company founders University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill alumni American chief executives of food industry companies American people of Jewish descent United States Navy personnel of World War II