H I S T O R Y

Melco was a family business founded by the Melman family over a century ago in 1900 in Leiden, the Netherlands. Founder, Jan Melman passed on the family business to his son Bertus Melman in 1923 who centered the core business around distributing food, beverages & beers.

Bertus remained in the beverage industry until the 1980s, when he sold the Melco business to Dutch business, Sligro – one of the largest catering wholesalers in the Netherlands.

In the photo below, Bertus Melman is seen with a Melco truck. Seen through the window of the truck is a store, with a sign that reads Slijterij, the word for “liquor store” in Dutch.

Branded bottles of Melco can also be seen in a photo. These bottles are currently on display at the Dutch culture & history museum, Openlucht Museum, in Arnhem, The Netherlands. Although unknown what beverage the bottles were originally used for, the inspiration has passed through generations and inspired today’s Melman Beers.

Today’s Melman Beer company was re-launched in 2020 by family descendants in Breda, the Netherlands. Melman Beverages business is now specializing in unique beer brewing & production, carrying on the family tradition and century-old history in beverages!