Pepsi Bottling Ventures LLC (PBV), Raleigh, N.C., the joint venture between Purchase, N.Y.-based PepsiCo Inc. and Japan-based Suntory International, announced it will officially begin operating in a newly constructed, 200,000-square-foot sales and distribution facility located on 32 acres off Highway 49 in Harrisburg, N.C.

Initially announced last April, the new operation allows PBV to retain more than 200 current jobs and consolidate both the Charlotte and Midland, N.C., locations into a single facility, the company says. The majority of its employees from both locations are transferring to the new facility, it adds. The sales and distribution center will support the significant growth anticipated by PBV in the Charlotte market for years to come, it adds. PBV purchased the Charlotte-area franchise in a territory swap with PepsiCo in mid-2013. 

"The new Harrisburg location provides us with the needed scale to leverage our operating capability to serve the customer base in the fastest growing region in North Carolina,” PBV President and Chief Executive Officer Paul Finney said in a statement. “We are very excited to be part of Harrisburg and the Charlotte metro-area."