Pet Supplies Plus making its home in Orangeburg; distribution center plans to employ 275

Michigan-based Pet Supplies Plus expects to begin operations at its 534,702-square-foot Orangeburg distribution plant within months.

“We are hoping by early January we would be able to start receiving property into the operation and by February and March we start shipping out our first product,” Pet Supplies Plus Orangeburg Plant Manager William Peay said.

“In the next four months or so, we should be up and running,” he said.

Pet Supplies Plus announced plans in August 2022 to invest $53 million and create 275 new jobs over the next five years. About $37.8 million of the company’s investment will be spent on land and buildings and $15.2 million on machinery and equipment.

It’s locating in the $25 million building in the Shamrock Commerce Center industrial park on U.S. Highway 301 near Interstate 26.

The company will be served by the City of Orangeburg’s Department of Public Utilities with power, water, gas and sewer.

The outside shell of the building has been completed. Wiring and electrical work were being done on Nov. 10.

“After that is done, we will start receiving some of our product and our equipment. We will start to erect the racking that goes inside the building and all the other functions until we have everything set up to start operations,” Peay said.

Harper Contractors out of Texas is the general contractor for the project.

Peay said the development of the building has been on time, although there were early supply chain issues.

He provided a brief tour of the building and explained how racking will be stacked six levels high throughout the building.

“By this time next year, it ought to be pretty much full,” Peay said.

The facility will enable Pet Supplies Plus to increase its distribution capabilities across the Southeast, Peay said. The company will distribute primarily by truck.

The new operation will be the company’s fourth distribution center located within the United States.

It has a 735,000-square-foot distribution center in Seymour, Indiana as well as smaller facilities in Pennsylvania and Texas.

The Orangeburg plant will be its second largest.

“We have different manufacturers that we buy product from and they ship it to us and we ship it to our stores and or our clients,” Peay said.

The company’s customers are its nearly 640 stores across the Southeast and Midwest, Peay said. There are corporate and franchise stores.

The Orangeburg facility was built to accommodate the company’s growth.

The company distributes dog food, cat litter, cat food, pet toys and decorative clothing for animals.

“It ranges – if it is something a dog, a cat or bird or fish or even a lizard can deal with, we sell it,” Peay said.

Orangeburg was in a “close heat” with Douglas, Georgia when Pets Supplies Plus as trying to decide where to locate.

“The decision was made just through the great partnership I think the leadership team had with the authorities here in Orangeburg that brought them here,” as well as the package offered to the company, Peay said. “It was just enough to get us to decide to make Orangeburg a home.”

The company has already filled several local positions, including maintenance and human resource manager positions. On Nov. 10, it was in the process of interviewing for supervisor and department manager positions.

“We expect hiring hourly folks in the early January timeframe,” Peay said. “We are going to have a very competitive wage which will include also some incentive packages that we will put in place. We expect it to be over $19 an hour to start.”

The jobs range from distribution operations-type of jobs such as pick packing, shipping, fork lift operators, stacking, wrapping, loading and shipping jobs.

There will also be information technology jobs available and material handling equipment jobs, Peay said.

“We are hoping folks will find this is a good opportunity to come and work for a very good company that is growing and expanding,” Peay said.

“I liked it personally. I am a big pet lover – had dogs all my life – and this company truly cares about the animal and really cares about the neighborhood and being a part of the neighborhood. All our customers are called neighbors and our associates are called team members. We are very close and want to be a part of the community not just another pet store,” he said.

“Orangeburg County is a special place,” Orangeburg County Development Commission Chairman Kenneth Middleton said.

He said, “Our strategic location, proximity to ports, infrastructure and skilled workforce are all valuable assets. Meeting the accelerating demand for industrial space, our strong partnerships help guarantee your success!”

Founded in 1988, Pet Supplies Plus, a subsidiary of Franchise Group, Inc., is one of the largest pet retail franchises in the United States, offering customers a wide assortment of natural pet foods, goods and services.

For more information on opportunities with Pet Supplies Plus, visit the company’s careers page at www.petsuppliesplus.com.