Byron has owned and operated several businesses thru the years; a burger diner, parking lots, Pat’s fashion dress store, and was a partner in Liebold-Gambulos Construction Company after serving in the U.S. Army during WWII and the Korean conflict.

In 1957, as the Prohibition Law ended, Governor Howard Edmondson vigorously helped Oklahomans have a choice to legalize alcohol. In 1958, the government asked Mr. Gambulos to set up mock liquor stores so people would have an idea of what a liquor store should look like. Byron saw this as an opportunity to sell store furniture and fixtures. Instead businessmen bought or rented the mock stores to operate them. Eventually, he built 55 stores across the state. But fate intervened and in Sept. 1959 when he built a liquor store on the corner of NW 23^rd and Lincoln to lease out; the businessman that was going to purchase the store was unable to get a liquor license so Byron decided to operate it himself. The stored opened for business on Dec. 7^th 1959 as Byron’s Package Store. The “package” refers to the brown paper bags used to conceal liquor bottles during the Prohibition era. The store started with only two employees but was able to make $1000 in sales the first Saturday in business. Byron thought “this is a new industry with unbelievable growth, its pre-marketed and will not go out of style” based on this he decided to leave the fashion business and enter the liquor industry. The original store was 3900 sq. feet and the first year Byron’s sales totaled over 1 million dollars. Byron could not believe his good fortune.

In Sept. 1959, when the State went “wet”, there were no franchises, no price control and anyone could get a liquor license.

In 1961, the state reclaimed the property Byron operated out of so he moved to a building owned by the family on 23rd and Broadway.

In 1962, the Liquor price war started. Since the State did not control pricing, as the volume went up prices got lower. Low cost wholesalers were changing the retail business concept creating the advantage of buying low. Byron was instrumental in helping to keep the prices low by eliminating various attempts to develop a monopoly of price fixing. In 1963-1965, Byron pioneered in offering the lowest prices to the consumer. Byron’s Liquor Warehouse has not only survived adversity, it has earned a solid spot as Oklahoma’s largest volume liquor retailer. Due to his persistence and tenacity in overcoming the roadblocks placed before him, Byron has throughout the years been a pioneer in changing liquor laws not only in Oklahoma but in other States that have adopted regulations similar to ours.

In the 1960’s, he was voted the largest cash & carry liquor store in America. In 1970, Byron started a major expansion program that has led to our 30,000 sq foot store. Byron’s was named 1990 Market Watch Leader, an elite list of about a dozen of the nation’s most successful liquor retailers.

Byron has traveled abroad several times to the wine growing areas of France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Greece and Portugal largely due to the increasing number of people in Oklahoma who enjoy fine wines. Byron’s was the first retail store to conduct wine tastings off premises. The liquor store business has allowed Mr. Gambulos to meet people of all walks of life throughout the World that otherwise he would have never read about or met. Over the years Byron has had some unique promotional programs. There was Western Months (with real guns) and a Tiger -in -your-Tank featuring a real tiger with an Old Charter Bottle on the top of the cage. Byron’s was also the first retail liquor store to advertise in the Oklahoman. Over the years we’ve had some notable persons who have shopped our store; Jerry Lee Lewis, Elvis Presley whose body guards filled his trailer while he waited the limo, William Jennings and George Wallace.

Byron has also been a member of many social, civic and government organizations like MAPS, Midwest Enterprises and he is a Board Member of the Oklahoma Zoological Trust. He is known by his friends as a shrewd businessman. Pride, thought, hard work, good business judgment in developing and maintaining a serviceable store for the benefit of the people are the best words to describe Mr. Gambulos’ success. Competitive pricing remains the key part of the store’s philosophy. Through our policy of staying two steps ahead of both our competition and the economy we have managed to maintain an increase in volume despite some less than desirable economic times.

Upon looking back over the last 50 years Mr. Gambulos sums up his thoughts this way: ”I could have sold the store a dozen times, but it has been good to me and the city”.