Posts Tagged “San Francisco Wholesale Produce Market”
The San Francisco Wholesale Produce Market has shortened its name to The SF Market. It also is rebranding with a new look to highlight the market’s role in the Bay Area’s food economy. The market’s 31 produce vendors include wholesalers, distributors and online grocery delivery companies, according to a news release.
The rebranding effort comes as the market has signed a 60-year lease with the City of San Francisco and recognition as a historic asset by San Francisco’s Legacy Business Registry. The SF Market name and logo, developed by Trinity Brand Group, will be on the market’s website, on market signage and on merchant trucks, according to the release.
“With its innovative track record of helping food businesses grow at every stage and size, The SF Market has played an instrumental role in how the Bay Area has evolved into a leading food destination,” Matthew Youngblood, co-founder of Trinity Brand Group, said in the release.
“We have been thrilled to have the expertise of Trinity Brand Group behind us as we took this important step to rebrand our organization,” Larry Brucia, president of the board of directors, said in the release. “Through our collaboration with Trinity and the roll-out of our new look, our goal is to increase awareness of the enormous positive impact of The SF Market and to connect with food purveyors and the community in a bigger, better and more meaningful way than ever before.”
The SF Market is currently working on a $96 million reinvestment project to upgrade and expand the facility in Bayview-Hunters Point, including an 80,000-square-foot building, according to the release.
Stone Fruit Shipments
California stone fruit shipments have just got underway, with a later and lighter start.
Giumarra Cos. office in Reedley, CA, started harvesting white and yellow peaches and yellow nectarines this past week. The company plans to begin its white nectarines and apricots new week, followed by plums a few days later.
Simonian Fruit Co. of Fowler, CA kicks off its stone fruit season about May 20th, about a week later than normal.
The completion of the first phase of the San Francisco Wholesale Produce Market’s expansion was recently celebrated by produce merchants, city leaders and members of the community.
Located on the east end of the market at 901 Rankin St., the new building adds 82,000 square feet of produce distribution and warehouse space to the market’s existing 300,000 square feet. The building provides office space as well as 20 refrigerated dock doors. It sits on about 3 acres.
Approximately 25,000 square feet of the new facility already has been leased to Mollie Stone’s Markets, Mill Valley, Calif. It will serve as the central produce distribution center for all nine of Mollie Stone’s stores in the region. The retailer of organic and natural foods plans to build out the space to meet its needs and move there in early spring., Mollie Stone’s had been part of the market for several years but had outgrown its existing space.
The wholesale market is finalizing a lease on the other space and hopes to make an announcement shortly. Prior to 2013, 3 acres of space wasn’t even in the market until city land became part of the property.
The completion of this facility is the first phase of the wholesale produce market’s $100 million investment and expansion plan, providing a modern and efficient home from which to deliver fresh fruits and vegetables to restaurants and local grocers in the city The new facility is part of a much larger long-term “reinvestment plan” made possible when the city of San Francisco, which owns the land on which the market sits, signed a 60-year least with the market in September 2013.
A new warehouse, plus plans to redevelop four central warehouses to meet wholesaler’s’ changing needs and re-route traffic around the market to allow for a more unobstructed flow of business, are among big changes being planned for the San Francisco Wholesale Produce Market, according to the San Francisco Business Times.
Hopefully, the changes will improve making it easier for 18 wheelers to manuever when delivering refrigerated loads of fresh produce.
Serving nearly 30 wholesalers and distributors, the 300,000-square foot market in Bayview is bursting at the seams with generations of family-owned businesses that are picking up steam, new vendors entering the market and a few large companies that need to expand to keep up with demand. Collectively, they recorded $500 million in sales last year, the Times reports.
“We keep having to find more space for so many of the vendors,” said the market’s general manager Michael Jains. “I guess it’s a good problem to have, but we’re excited for what’s next.”
Janis and his team are gearing up to break ground on an adjacent 84,000-square-foot facility next month — the first phase of a $100 million renovation and expansion that will take shape over the next 10 years.
With help from the city, the project seeks to modernize and expand the market to 500,000 square feet, increasing merchant sales to a projected $737 million and growing the number of full-time workers to 1,000.
The project also calls for lighting and landscaping enhancements, as well as the creation of a “front door” entry point to make it easier for customers and visitors to enter and navigate the market.
According to Janis, the improvements are a needed to secure the long-term sustainability of the market, which plays an important role in the Bay Area’s food system by servicing most of the region’s restaurants, hotels, markets and grocery stores.