SubTropolis Location Allows Paris Brothers to Expand and Diversify

Now in its 36th year, Kansas City-based Paris Brothers has grown from a family popcorn purveyor to an industry leader in specialty foodservice warehousing, distribution, logistics and manufacturing.

Perhaps best known for its specialty food retail brands Parisi Artisan Coffee®, Mother Earth Coffee®, Cervasi® and Margarita’s Amigos®, Paris Brothers offers a full range of warehouse solutions including freezer, multi-temperature cooler space and dry space, as well as end-to-end logistics and shipping services through sister company, Ground Freight Expeditors (GFE). In addition, the company distributes and sells more than 4,500 items to grocery and specialty food stores, restaurants and national food distributors throughout the Midwest.

The nerve center of this globally diverse company takes place underground within Hunt Midwest SubTropolis, home to Paris Brothers’ 513,099 square foot supply chain facility. The world’s largest underground business complex, SubTropolis offers a cost-effective, naturally climate- and humidity-controlled, easily expandable, and ENERGY-STAR certified facility nestled within a 270 million year old limestone deposit 100 feet below the surface.

On any given day, Paris Brothers has 180 trucks coming and going to SubTropolis, moving goods to and from its specialty foods and USDA warehousing operations. Since consolidating operations underground in 2000, Paris Brothers has grown its footprint six-fold from 110,000 square feet to 513,099 square feet of space and staking its claim as the largest of SubTropolis’ more than 50 underground tenants.

“Hunt Midwest has been a very valuable business partner,” Paris Brothers Co-founder and Principal Joe Paris said. “We love it here because as our needs have grown, SubTropolis has been able to accommodate them.”

EXPANDED WAREHOUSING

Paris Brothers Warehousing directly credits the SubTropolis environment with its successful expansion into the $6 billion specialty coffee industry. Because raw coffee readily absorbs elements from the external environment, optimal warehouse conditions play a critical role in sustaining the quality of specialty green coffee.

Paris Brothers Specialty Coffee Warehouse is now the largest certified organic underground coffee storage location in the U.S., allowing customers to bring specialty coffee closer to specialty roasters in the Midwest via the nation’s only inland, USDA certified, climate-controlled green coffee warehousing facility, according to Scott Presnell, director of marketing/coffee group manager for Paris Brothers.

“With transportation access ‘indoors,’ goods are loaded and unloaded underground, in a closely-monitored, secure environment 24/7/365,” Presnell said. “Our central location in the geographic center of the United States can provide strategic efficiencies in getting product distributed throughout the country. Easy access to primary north-south and east-west shipping corridors, as well as direct access for truck and rail make going ‘underground’ with your products an ideal scenario.”

SPECIALTY FOOD SERVICE DISTRIBUTION

Paris Brothers distributes and sells more than 4,500 items to retail grocers, grocery warehouses, foodservice providers and national food distributors. Through Paris Brothers Specialty Foods, the company handles specialty goods that require proper storage and handling, as well as an understanding of the nuances associated with marketing and selling ‘artisan quality’ products, such as cave-aged cheeses and specialty coffees. Paris Brothers distributes imported culinary products such as Colavita® pasta and olive oil, as well as approximately 400 different types of Artisan style cheeses from all over the globe, and other specialty products to stores and restaurants all over the Midwest.

Paris Brothers also distributes and/or manufactures more than 15 different private label brands and proprietary products sold to stores like Costco, Sam’s Club, Target, and Walmart, in addition to regional grocery chains. The company distributes notable brand favorites such as sauces from well-known restaurants like Jack Stack, Arthur Bryant’s, Lidia’s and Cascone’s.

LOGISTICS

Paris Brothers also helps other companies design and implement their own supply chain management plans. These services range from basic warehousing with online inventory management to full supply chain integration, including warehousing, inventory management, distribution and full integration as a third-party licensee.

Combining its warehouse and distribution expertise with the services of sister company, Ground Freight Expeditors (GFE), companies may choose from strategic logistical freight options that help meet needed time frames and budgets. Staffed by transportation professionals, GFE services range from next day delivery to 2nd, 3rd and 3-to-5-day delivery.

MANUFACTURING

Paris Brothers Specialty Foods manufactures a full line of specialty products in the categories of Italian, Hispanic, barbecue and Asian sauces, dips and dressings both as private label and through its popular Cervasi USA brand.

In 2005, Paris Brothers launched a coffee roasting division, concentrating on small-batch roasted, specialty coffees. Working in conjunction with its green coffee warehousing services and building on existing relationships with some of the world’s top coffee importers, Paris Brothers has the capability to source, roast, pack and distribute specialty coffees for private label retail or custom service applications. Over the past decade, the company also has developed and successfully launched two consumer coffee brands operating across multiple segments: its namesake Parisi Artisan Coffee and in 2015, Mother Earth Coffee, a brand focused on sustainable coffee operations and sourcing direct trade, organic products for both wholesale services and retail cafe operations.

“Hunt Midwest understands our needs — and what we need to run our business — and that allows us to focus on growing into new markets and services, not on managing our facility,” Paris said. “Our two companies enjoy a truly complementary partnership and collaborative relationship.”

THE SUBTROPOLIS ADVANTAGE

Flexible Space

With 6 million square feet of leasable space and another 8 million square feet available for expansion, SubTropolis’ virtually limitless space has enabled Paris Brothers to respond to overall and seasonal market demand by scaling and reconfiguring warehouse and distribution space as needed.

“For us, SubTropolis is perfect,” Paris said.

World’s Largest Green Roof

SubTropolis remains a steady 68-72 degrees year-round, offering significant energy savings for companies thanks to its naturally occurring “green roof.” The underground location is ideal for Paris Brothers due to SubTropolis having dry storage, multi-temperature cooler space and freezer space operations all under one roof.

“We estimate somewhere between 50 and 60 percent in energy savings alone, thanks to the ability to control the climate for food storage. To replicate that in an above-ground facility would be a very expensive, high-energy use situation,” Paris said.

Ultimate Climate and Quality Control

The underground location enables Paris Brothers to benefit from the earth’s natural permafrost, which is defined on the basis of temperature, as soil or rock that remains below 0°C throughout the year, and forms when the ground cools sufficiently in winter to produce a frozen layer that persists throughout the following summer.

“The climate control aspect of the SubTropolis environment means giving us a huge differentiation from competitors in the ports of Houston or New Orleans, for example, where there is 100 percent humidity. We definitely use the benefit of the facility in the way we present ourselves.”

Ultimate Location

SubTropolis is located in Kansas City, in the heart of the major north-south and east-west transportation corridors, saving customers both distribution time and costs. There are 300 truck lines serving SubTropolis, which includes street-level access that easily accommodates 18-wheelers. Trucks are loaded and unloaded inside of SubTropolis, which is protected from the elements and exterior temperature fluctuations. The underground location yields more control over product quality, according to Paris.

Deep Freeze

Paris Brothers leases cold storage space in a 255,000 square foot freezer. In addition, Paris Brothers has added three of its own multi-temperature coolers, enabling the company to store everything from commodity foodstuffs for government contract distribution to ingredients for national foodservice companies.