Near Charlotte, West Coast flavor manufacturer opens its doors to 20,000 varieties

Walking through the new manufacturing facility in Concord Thursday, it’s obvious what Custom Flavors produces: Flavors. Though tarps cover the products to keep customers confidential, the sweet smell of thousands of organic, natural and artificial flavors and flavored products permeated across the building.

At the company’s grand opening, about 70 people gathered to celebrate and tour its first East Coast location. Custom Flavors, which is at 7955 W. Winds Blvd., is based in San Clemente, California.

Here is what we learned about the company’s new facility.

20,000 flavors and counting

Custom Flavors develops and produces over 20,000 flavors and flavor combinations that are used in bakery, beverage, confectionery, dairy, supplements and sports nutrition products. The growing list includes strawberry, avocado, lavender, almond, cinnamon, chocolate cake, burnt caramel, bubble gum and piña colada flavoring.

Inside the facility, there are designated areas with tanks and pots for liquid and powder manufacturing.

“There is a blend of art and science. So behind every single flavor there is a highly strategic process, because there’s a lot of collaboration between what we expect from what the customer expects,” said Sara Mariño, the director of research and development and senior flavor chemist.

While CEO Alex Wendling said he could not share specific brands that Custom Flavors works with because of nondisclosure agreements, the company works with brands sold in big-name retailers including Costco, Publix, Walmart and Sam’s Club.

New jobs in Cabarrus County

The Concord location employs 19 people with four open positions. Wendling said they are “well on our way” to reach the city of Concord’s December 2024 estimate that the company would create 42 jobs in three years.

“In our search, we wanted to find a place that had a great technical community, a similar path of growth, and overall a facility that would mirror the beautiful state-of-the-art facilities we have in California,” Wendling said. “And we found that here in Concord, North Carolina.”

The custom cost

Custom Flavors worked with A M King, a Charlotte-based Design-Build firm, to design and construct the 53,000 square foot facility.

According to the city’s initial estimates, Custom Flavors planned to invest $7.75 million in the facility over three years.

For its investment in North Carolina, the company received a $34,000 state tax incentive through the One North Carolina Fund grant. Wendling said their team just filed for the first distribution of the grant, which is received based on job creation performance.

The next phase of Custom Flavors in Concord

With locations on both coasts, Custom Flavors can now ship to more than 85% of the United States within two business days, according to Custom Flavors and A M King.

Though the company originally finished phase one of its plans in December, about 40% of its space is still being constructed.

This second phase, which is estimated to be completed in October, will include a research and development lab. Once completed, the Concord facility plans to collaborate with the North Carolina Food Innovation Lab on the North Carolina Research Campus in Kannapolis.