Baldor Specialty Foods expands operations
Bronx, N.Y.-based distributor Baldor Specialty Foods has signed a lease for a new facility in Lanham, Md.
The facility will significantly expand and enhance its operations in the Washington, D.C., area, according to a news release.
The new 100,000-square-foot warehouse facility includes 35 dock doors, which will allow Baldor DC to essentially double its number of routes over the next few years and provide quicker and earlier deliveries to their restaurant and food service customers, the release said.
Just 12 miles out of Washington, the warehouse will be in the Hargrove Industrial Campus at 4450 Hargrove Drive in Lanham, according to the release.
The large space and strategic location will allow Baldor to improve picking capabilities to satisfy customer demand, speed up delivery times and add additional area farms and vendors to its roster of fresh, local sources, the release said.
“At Baldor, we see our customers’ success as our success, and delivering for them means providing the best possible ingredients and the best possible service every single day,” Baldor Specialty Foods President Mike Muzyk said in the release. “As our customer base has grown in DC, Maryland and Virginia, we recognized the need for more space, and in particular, a location that allows us to get more trucks out and out faster. This expansion reflects Baldor’s commitment to our customers in this region.”
“The Lanham property also represents a continued investment in the economy of the area,” Krenar Jusufi, vice president of engineering, said in the release.
Jusufi joined Baldor in June 2022 from HelloFresh, where he was director of automation and engineering. The facility’s proximity to major highways will allow the company to deliver efficiently to all surrounding areas, Jusufi said in the release.
As part of its expansion, Baldor will be looking to hire upwards of 100 workers, including drivers and warehouse workers. The Baldor DC expansion echoes the company’s earlier expansions in the Boston and Philadelphia markets as well as additions to its Hunts Point, N.Y., headquarters in the Bronx, the release said.
“Since we launched operations in the D.C. area in 2012, we've seen incredible demand for our products from local chefs, and the local team — now 70 strong — has risen to the challenge," Dominic Vasold, operations manager for the region, said in the release. "We are excited that this new location will allow us to prepare for the next decade of growth."
Baldor Specialty Foods manages major restaurant, food service, retail and corporate accounts throughout the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, the release said, offering over 6,000 fresh produce and specialty food items from Virginia to Maine.
