A little over a year after Milwaukee-based frozen pizza manufacturer
Palermo’s announced a sizable expansion with the addition of a plant
in the city of Jefferson, the company is once again making headlines with news of its latest planned investment, in West Milwaukee.
Last week, the company
unveiled plans to build a 200,000-square-foot production facility at the former Froedtert Malt site in West Milwaukee.
That’s not the only way Palermo’s is eyeing growth. With the company’s
2022 acquisition of Funky Fresh Spring Rolls,
Giacomo Fallucca, chief executive officer and chairman of the board at Palermo Villa Inc., said there are also several opportunities for line expansions under that brand.
BizTimes Milwaukee reporter Ashley Smart spoke with Fallucca this week to learn more about Palermo’s and the company’s continued growth, and what Fallucca’s vision for the next few years is. Below are portions of their conversation.
BizTimes: Let’s start back in February 2023, when the new Jefferson facility was announced. How did you know it was time for a new plant?
Fallucca: "Jefferson had been in the making for well over a year. We were looking for a location to keep up with the growing demand for our products throughout the country. Jefferson was a site that became available to us and it was already a USDA facility (formerly used by Tyson Foods), so it needed some infrastructure work, but that's how we landed there. It’s what was available short of us building a new facility. “
What has been the key to unlocking Palermo’s growth over the last two years?
"We have a growth culture and a growth mentality. It's just really a part of who we are as a company. We're a growth company. We look at winning with our employees, so we can win with our customers. That's the reason for the growth. It's just continued planning and deliberate actions towards the marketplace."
The company targeted 200 jobs with the Jefferson project. Did you reach that goal?"
"We continue to bring on new and develop our talent hired during the plant starting. We currently employ more than 100 individuals from Jefferson and surrounding communities."
Let’s talk about West Milwaukee. How long was the company eyeing that location?
"We had been looking at a number of sites around Milwaukee for at least six to nine months. That was a site that had just become available. It was a very recent candidate for either existing buildings or existing land. One of the biggest criteria was it was close to our Canal Street headquarters. It's three miles away, which was one of the biggest factors. Then there's the fact that the land is about 20 acres or so. We’re building a brand-new building and everything that goes with it, from warehouse freezers to production space."
Can you share how much the company is investing in the new West Milwaukee plant?
“We haven’t disclosed the amount, but it’s sizable.”
Is the company considering physical expansion anywhere else in southeastern Wisconsin?
“We are in a good place for the next two or three years. I think the current development is good for now.”
Can you share more about the growth Palermo’s is experiencing at its headquarters?
"The West Milwaukee plant will primarily be a production facility with the normal amount of supervisory management. However, a fair amount of support will be required to support that facility. Those infrastructure jobs -- support jobs -- will be added at Canal Street. It just makes sense for us to grow our employee base at our corporate headquarters, and then we add more on the operation side. So that's where the growth is coming from. We need more parking lot space, we need more internal office space. There's going to be at least a couple of dozen employees added at Canal Street to support our overall company growth."
How does Palermo’s rank when compared to the largest frozen pizza manufacturers in the country?
"We have five different brands. We subscribe to Nielsen, SPINS and IRI syndicated data to evaluate how our brands perform in the marketplace. Our goal is to have as many of our brands in the top 50 as possible. We have a number of brands that are in the top 50%, we have some brands that are in the top 10, and some that are top 20 and 50. It's kind of like back in the day, with the Billboard Top 100 charts. It's the same thing with pizza. There's a finite amount of space. The goal is to have as many of our products in the top 50 as possible."
In 2022, Palermo’s acquired Milwaukee-based Funky Fresh Spring rolls. How has that business been growing?
“Funky Fresh is doing exactly what we intended it to do. It's a product that we felt had scalability. Funky Fresh has unique flavor combinations plus TrueMan (McGee), the founder behind it, has all the elements for success. We tested the market and found we had a larger size product with a much higher retail price. Now, we have three-pack but the flavors are still the same. The packaging is now a box, which is easier to put on the shelf. We're gaining some really good traction. Our eyes are set on the natural category with a number of smaller independent (grocery) chains throughout the country. We'd love to have (Funky Fresh) distribution at Whole Foods or Sprouts."
Is the company eyeing any other acquisitions in the frozen foods space?
"Nothing that has been finalized yet. The Funky Fresh brand can be expanded upon with a variety of different products, but currently we're focused on spring rolls. We may look at some line expansions in the next 12 to 18 months."
What other innovations, whether in the frozen pizza space or frozen foods space generally, is the company working on?
“Innovation is the foundation of all of our production. As we look at our approach towards innovation, it comes in so many different forms. It comes from our own team as we look at the relevance of products and flavors. It comes from our travels - locally, throughout the country and internationally. We look at flavors of pizza and what trends seem to be popular and if they're sustainable. We're always looking at different crust styles and what will be the next big thing."
