Helen of Troy to build new 1,300,000ft² distribution centre in Olive Branch, Mississippi

Personal care products manufacturer Helen of Troy has announced the construction of a new 1,300,000ft² distribution centre in Olive Branch, Mississippi in the US.

The firm has entered into an agreement to purchase 84 acres of land, of which the distribution centre will occupy 1.3 million ft², with an approximate investment of $37m.

Helen of Troy is planning to fund the project by using a combination of cash from operations, long-term financing and the company’s existing revolving line of credit.

The firm is expecting to inaugurate the new distribution center in the third fiscal quarter of fiscal 2014.

Helen of Troy chairman, chief executive officer and president Gerald Rubin said with the addition of new distribution space the the firm will own a total of 2.5 million ft² capacity in DeSoto County, Mississippi.

"This is a significant commitment for Helen of Troy and we will continue to benefit from the skilled workforce, logistics infrastructure and geographic attractiveness of DeSoto County," added Rubin.

The firm also revealed that it would add more than 300 full-time employees to its operations in DeSoto County over the next five years.

Helen of Troy is a US-based cosmetics and personal care company, whose personal brands include Revlon, Vidal Sassoon, Dr. Scholl’s, Pro Beauty Tools, Sure, Pert Plus, Infusium23, Brut, Ammens, Hot Tools, Bed Head, Karina, Ogilvie and Gold ‘N Hot.

The firm currently owns and operates a 1,200,000ft² distribution centre in Southaven, Mississippi and leases approximately 700,000ft² in Memphis, Tennessee in the US.