Greenville will be getting sweeter next year when Sweet Street Desserts takes over the former Sara Lee manufacturing facility at 1916 Piedmont Highway in Greenville County.
With a tag line of “sweet, indulgent desserts as a way of life,” the frozen gourmet dessert company plans to upfit the 120,000-square-foot facility with new machinery and equipment. The company expects to begin manufacturing operations by summer 2014 and is expected to generate at least 80 new jobs over the next several years.
“We were looking for options to expand our capacity, and the plant became available in Greenville,” said Douglas Messinger, vice president and general manager of Sweet Street. “On researching the existing plant infrastructure, the area, the availability of talented workforce, as well the availability of educational programs and the community support, we felt it was the perfect place.”
Amy’s Kitchen, makers of natural and organic frozen and convenience foods, had acquired the property in early 2011 for use as a manufacturing facility, but announced later that year that the opening would have to be delayed for several years.
Sweet Street Desserts is headquartered in Reading, Pa., and has over 800 employees. The company was founded by CEO Sandy Solmon, who began Sweet Street in a two-bay garage in 1979. The company has rapidly grown to become the premier gourmet dessert manufacturer in the world, providing a wide range of products including pies, big cakes, cheesecakes, dessert bars, scones, cookies and petit fours in more than 60 countries worldwide.
“While we are firmly rooted in Reading and it will always be home, Sweet Street is excited to begin this new chapter in our history here in South Carolina,” said Messinger. “We look forward to creating a dynamic and gratifying environment that customers, suppliers and co-workers will enjoy, and ensuring a story of sweet success for them, our company and our community in the years to come.”
Many of the world’s leading food-service establishments – including well-known hotels, restaurants, cafes and upscale supermarkets – serve Sweet Street products as their own, and Sweet Street is consistently voted by food-service professionals as the most innovative and one of the Top 10 food service suppliers in the United States.
“We are pleased to move forward with plans to locate our new facility in South Carolina, allowing us to expand production capacity and more easily and efficiently reach our growing customer base in markets across North and South America,” said Solmon. “The state of South Carolina and the local community offered us a wonderful business environment and bent over backwards to assist us. Greenville County provided us with an excellent facility that is ideally suited to our needs and we are excited to begin this new chapter in our organization’s history.”
