Dot Foods, the largest food industry redistributor in North America, continues to grow, officially breaking ground on its 12th distribution center recently. The new $36 million facility will be constructed on 35 acres of land in Bear DE, about 50 miles southwest of Philadelphia.
This 188,000-square-foot facility will be located at 301 American Boulevard, near the intersection of Red Lion and Wrangle Hill Roads. The development includes offices; refrigerated, dry and frozen warehouse space; and a truck yard and garage to service Dot’s fleet.
“A lot of work has been done to get us to this day,” said Dick Tracy, Dot Foods president, “and we are excited to move this project into the next phase. Dot Foods Delaware joins our other two East Coast locations, in Maryland and New York, and will allow us to even better serve our customers in eastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York and Connecticut. We look forward to building relationships with many more people in the region as we become part of the Bear community.”
Dot Foods leaders were joined by several state and county leaders to mark the occasion. Lieutenant Gov Bethany Hall-Long, US Rep Lisa Blunt Rochester, and Damian DeStefano of the Delaware Division of Small Business attended the groundbreaking ceremony, along with State Senator Nicole Poore and New Castle County Executive Matt Meyer.
The firm will begin work on the Bear distribution center in November, with an estimated completion date for the project of autumn 2019. Dot will hire up to 125 people in the first year, starting with truck drivers. The company has established a terminal location in nearby New Castle DE for its transportation operations at 194 South Dupont Highway.
Dot will also have career opportunities for warehouse and support staff. Hiring will get underway next spring. Dot plans to employ 200 people by 2022.
Class A Regional Driver positions are currently posted on www.DriveforDot.com. Dot will employ 50 drivers by the time the Bear distribution center opens in late 2019. As additional positions in the warehouse and office become available, they will be posted at www.DotFoods.com/careers.
Dot Foods Delaware will be led by general manager Joe Little, who will celebrate his 30th anniversary with the company in 2019. He began his career at Dot’s corporate headquarters in Mt Sterling IL. After spending 13 years there, he moved to Dot’s Maryland location, before transferring to Idaho to open that distribution center. For the past five years, Little has served as the general manager of Dot Foods New York in Liverpool. He and his wife Janna are relocating to Delaware.
For full information, visit www.DotFoods.com.
