Tops Beefing Up Frozen Warehouse Facilities

As it expands its geographic footprint, Tops Markets LLC is upgrading its frozen food facilities. Earlier this month, the Williamsville, N.Y.-based grocer moved its freezer warehouse to a 200,000-square-foot site in West Seneca, N.Y., having outgrown its existing 95,000-square-foot warehouse in Cheektowaga, N.Y.

Noting that the new “warehouse … is twice the size of our old facility to help us grow and continue to offer our customers all their favorite frozen foods in the future,” Kevin Darrington, Tops’ EVP of supply chain and information technology said: “Throughout this whole process, the team at Allied Frozen Storage, and especially our Tops associates, have been extremely helpful and supportive, ensuring that this transition is successful and seamless.”

Tops sought a facility that would enable it to boost its item mix as well as support the chain’s growth plans. The new warehouse has a 2,500-SKU holding capacity, which means that the company won’t have to depend any longer on outside storage.

Additional improvements to the warehouse are planned over the coming months, including LED lighting, safety lights and new dock seals to enhance operational efficiencies. The warehouse will continue to employee 64 associates with the potential to adjust accordingly as Tops increases its store count. Both the new facility and the existing warehouse are owned by Brockport, N.Y.-based Allied.

Tops operates 172  supermarkets, with an additional five stores run by franchisees under the Tops banner. The company employs more than 16,000 associates in upstate New York, northern Pennsylvania, western Vermont and north central Massachusetts.