Coca-Cola opens new St. Petersburg sales and distribution center

Coca-Cola has a new facility in the Tampa Bay area.

The beverage company opened its $10.2 million sales and distribution center off Gandy Boulevard in St. Petersburg earlier this month, Coke Florida said in a statement Wednesday. Coke Florida began operating at the site on Dec. 5.

Construction began on the site in 2019 and was delayed by the pandemic, said the Coca-Cola Florida branch based in Tampa. It’s the first site built from scratch by Coke Florida, which was founded in 2015. The 22,000-square-foot sales and distribution center at 9300 16th St. N employs 140 people, catering to 3,500 customers in Pinellas County.

In addition to the St. Petersburg facility, Coke Florida has a bigger project in the works.

During the summer, Coke Florida broke ground on a $250 million sales and distribution center in Tampa that will be more than 800,000 square feet, located between the Selmon Expressway and Causeway Boulevard. It’s expected to take between 24 and 36 months to build due to economic conditions.

Once it’s completed, it will have space for 800 Tampa employees across sales, manufacturing, warehousing, distribution, fleet operations and professional services. Coke Florida covers 47 counties in the state and 21 million consumers, with 18 sales and distribution centers and four manufacturing centers.