Odom Corp., the Bellevue, Wash.-based wholesale beverage distributor, is anticipating the completion this summer of a new 200,000-square-foot regional warehouse on the West Plains, says Jerry Dexter, Spokane-based senior vice president for supply chain management for the company. 

The $20 million facility, which sits on a 43-acre lot at 5810 W. Thorpe, will have about 8,000 square feet of office space and the remainder will be warehouse space, Dexter says. The company broke ground on the project early last fall and was originally anticipating completion in April, but winter weather pushed it back, he says.

“Our target is to be able to start utilizing the warehouse portion in early June,” Dexter says. “But the offices and final everything will probably be early August. Mother Nature gave us a few setbacks this winter.”

Odom currently leases a 100,000-square-foot building at 4122 S. Grove, across the street from the new project. Dexter says the company will vacate that facility once the new one is completed. Odom has been outgrowing the structure it currently occupies, Dexter says, and the company also wants to own its own facility here. 

“We’ve been struggling with the amount of space we have here for about five years now,” he says. “We lease this building; we want to own our buildings.”

The new warehouse, which was designed and is being built by Boston-based The Design Group, will serve as Odom’s distribution center for all of Eastern Washington, Dexter says, and also will act as a support facility for North Idaho. The company will distribute beer, wine, and some nonalcoholic products, such as the energy drink Rockstar, and some juices from the facility. 

The company employs 392 people in the region that the West Plains distribution center will serve, Dexter says. Of those, 153 work directly out of the warehouse here. 

Dexter estimates that the completed warehouse, which will have about 16,000 square feet of cold storage space, will be able to accommodate around 700,000 cases of beverage products. 

In addition to needing more space, Odom decided to build the new facility to grow its regional distribution network here, he says.

“Our business is continuing to grow and expand,” Dexter says. “We had some smaller warehouses in other locations; those have been closed and become dock facilities. Now the orders are selected here and shipped overnight to the other locations.”

The company is planning ahead for any future expansion by building the new facility with a removable metal wall at one end, Dexter says, which will enable Odom to expand the square footage of the building without stopping  operations inside. 

“We have not gone down that path with the county yet, but estimates are we could double the size of the building,” he says. 

Dexter says the company is developing the facility with both its current growth and the future in mind. 

“We’re building it large enough so we can grow into it, and continue looking for brands (to acquire) that make sense for us,” he says. “It’s really based upon current need and looking at a 10- or 15-year plan down the road. That’s the space we need.” 

The company also is considering moving some of its backroom operations here, such as accounting and information technology, from its West Side headquarters. However, there aren’t any firm plans for that at this time, Dexter says. 

“That’s a more futuristic process; I don’t have a timeline for it,” he says. 

Founded in Alaska in in 1934, Odom is celebrating its 80th anniversary this year, Dexter says. The company carries a variety of beverages including beer, wine, soft drinks, juices, and energy drinks. In Washington state, Dexter says, its customers are any business with a license to distribute alcoholic or nonalcoholic beverages. That includes grocery stores, convenience stores, restaurants, bars, golf courses, and airports, Dexter says. 

In all, Odom operates eight facilities in Washington, three in Idaho, four in Oregon, and 10 in Alaska.