Westrock Coffee Co. announced Tuesday that it will continue to expand in Conway, with plans to invest $70 million to build a 530,000-square-foot distribution center by the end of the year.
Westrock, a global coffee and tea producer, will fully occupy the facility on 30 acres at William J. Clark Drive near Interstate 40 in Conway, just 2.2 miles from the company's manufacturing plant.
"This new facility is a testament to our commitment to meeting the growing demand for our products and providing the highest level of service to our valued clients," Joe Ford, Westrock co-founder and chairman, said Tuesday in announcing the expansion. "We look forward to continuing to expand our presence in central Arkansas and drive Westrock Coffee's growth and success in the industry."
Just more than a year ago, in December 2021, the Little Rock company said it would invest more than $100 million and add several hundred jobs with the purchase of a 524,000-square-foot manufacturing plant in Conway. Company officials said at the time that the Conway plant would be the largest of its kind in the United States and would begin producing extracts, or concentrated liquids, this year.
The Conway manufacturing plant expanded Westrock's finished product offerings, added beverage-packaging solutions and would allow the company to extend its geographic reach.
Westrock will operate in just more than 1 million square feet of manufacturing and distribution space in Conway, making it one of the city's largest producers and investors.
"It's an exciting time for the company and exciting for Conway to be part of their growth story," Jamie Gates, executive vice president of the Conway Area Chamber of Commerce, said Tuesday.
"When you look at total square footage and total investment, they're one of our largest manufacturing employers," Gates said. "They have immediately become one of the most important parts of our production economy."
Westrock said it is developing the project with Tempus Realty Partners of Little Rock, a private real estate investment firm. The Conway Development Corp., the city's chief economic development arm, owned the 30-acre site, according to Gates.
The tilt-wall facility, which generally means exterior walls that are constructed on site and then lifted in place like tiles, will support product and packaging produced at Westrock Coffee's extract and ready-to-drink manufacturing facility in Conway and fill other distribution needs. The center will feature about 72 dock doors.
Will Ford, group president of operations, said the beverage industry is undergoing "seismic shifts in consumption preferences," and the new center will help the company's customers "continue to innovate."
Westrock, with offices in 10 countries, supplies some of the world's most recognized brands with coffee, tea, flavors and extracts. The company is the top private-label coffee and tea provider to U.S. restaurants by volume and is ranked the second-largest extract provider for ready-to-drink coffee.