RealCold
RealCold is a U.S. national cold chain solutions provider operating 8 temperature-controlled facilities (61M+ cubic feet) offering multi-temperature storage, value-added services, and direct-to-consumer fulfillment to food manufacturers, grocers, food service providers, and digital native brands.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2022
- HeadquartersLakeland, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What RealCold does
RealCold is a U.S. national cold chain solutions provider operating a network of temperature-controlled warehouses, value-added services, and direct-to-consumer fulfillment. Founded in 2022 and backed by Related Fund Management (approximately $1B in committed capital from a manager with $12B+ AUM), the company runs 8 facilities totaling over 61 million cubic feet and 180,000+ pallet positions across the Sun Belt, West Coast, Mountain West, and a new Northeast site under construction in East Hanover, NJ. The facility mix spans frozen (-20°F), refrigerated, and ambient storage with fully convertible rooms, LEED-certified new construction, and certifications including SQF, FSMA, and food-grade cold storage; the SCL Cold Chain acquisition added CEIV Pharma, FDA-registered, and Bonded CFS status for pharmaceutical and biologic logistics.
The platform is built around four service lines: temperature-controlled storage, handling and pallet services, value-added services (labeling, relabeling, DSD, cross-docking, kitting, e-commerce prep), and direct-to-consumer fulfillment. The DTC stack uses a proprietary Order Management System integrated with Shopify, Amazon, WooCommerce, Big Commerce, and NetSuite, layered on top of an enterprise Blue Yonder WMS, with intelligent order routing, weather-based cartonization, and 97% U.S. population reach in 2-day delivery. GTM is direct enterprise sales targeting food manufacturers and processors, grocers and retailers, food service providers, and digital native brands, with named reference customers including Schwan's, Tillamook, Hana Group, Rosewood Ranches, and Wild Pastures.
Revenue is generated through storage subscriptions (7/14/30-day rate formats), managed-service fees for value-added handling, and transaction-based DTC fulfillment fees, with quote-based pricing and no publicly disclosed rate cards. The company is led by an executive team drawn from Americold, Lineage (post-IPO), U.S. Cold Storage, CEVA, FedEx, Publix, and ButcherBox, suggesting an experienced operator base scaling a greenfield-plus-acquisition national platform.
RealCold firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- RealCold
- Legal name
- RealCold
- Website
- https://realcold.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2022
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- RealCold is a U.S. national cold chain solutions provider operating 8 temperature-controlled facilities (61M+ cubic feet) offering multi-temperature storage, value-added services, and direct-to-consumer fulfillment to food manufacturers, grocers, food service providers, and digital native brands.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
RealCold industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Cold Chain Logistics & Temperature-Controlled Warehousing
- NAICS
- Refrigerated Warehousing and Storage (493120)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Temperature-Controlled Distribution Centers (DCs) (AFAOAFAE)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Medical Devices & Diagnostics Temperature-Controlled Storage (TLALABAH), Pharma & Biotech Cold Storage (2–8°C, CRT) (AFAOAFAG)
Keywords
Where RealCold is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Lakeland
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices8 records
Markets served
RealCold business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Infrastructure, Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Temperature-Controlled Storage: Multi-temperature cold storage services with flexible billing options (7-day, 14-day, 30-day rate formats) providing freezer, refrigerated, and ambient storage across the national facility network.
- Value-Added Services: High-touch services including labeling/relabeling, inbound decanting, direct-to-store delivery (DSD) programs, cross-docking, e-commerce fulfillment, kitting, and personalization. These services are bundled with storage or sold as standalone offerings.
- Direct-to-Consumer Fulfillment: End-to-end e-commerce fulfillment for frozen and refrigerated products, including marketplace integration, picking, packing, and last-mile delivery. Revenue is generated per-order with pricing based on shipment weight, dimensions, and temperature requirements.
- Handling and Pallet Services: Case picking, layer picking, pallet inversions and assembly, mixed pallet building for DSD applications, slip sheeting, railcar/container unloading, and cross-docking services.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Pay-as-you-go | Flexible storage rate formats |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
RealCold product offering
Product offeringCore offering
RealCold provides temperature-controlled storage, handling, value-added services, and direct-to-consumer cold chain fulfillment across a national network of 8 facilities with 61+ million cubic feet of capacity. The company serves food manufacturers, grocers, food service providers, digital native brands, and pharmaceutical companies with multi-temperature storage, e-commerce fulfillment integrated to major marketplaces, and value-added capabilities such as labeling, kitting, and direct-to-store delivery.
Product overview
RealCold offers a comprehensive cold chain solutions platform consisting of four core services: Temperature-Controlled Storage Services (over 61 million cubic feet across 8 facilities), Handling & Pallet Services (specialized product handling and pallet management), Value Added Services (labeling, DSD, kitting, repackaging), and Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) Fulfillment (end-to-end e-commerce cold chain). The company operates 8 facilities across the U.S. (Clackamas OR, Clearfield UT, Colton CA, Denton TX, Lockhart TX, Ormond Beach FL, Lakeland FL, East Hanover NJ under construction), serving food manufacturers, grocers, food service providers, and digital native brands. RealCold's platform is distinguished by its customer-centric engineering approach, value-added services as a primary offering (not secondary), modern LEED-certified facilities, and proprietary Order Management System for DTC operations.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Temperature-Controlled Storage Services National network of multi-temperature storage facilities offering over 61 million cubic feet of temperature-controlled space across 8 locations, including frozen storage (-20°F to 55°F), refrigerated storage, overflow/seasonal storage, tempering and slacking, room freeze, cross-docking, pick and pack, and flexible 7-day, 14-day, or 30-day billing options. Designed for food manufacturers, grocers, and food service providers.
- Handling & Pallet Services Expert services for safe inbound and outbound handling of frozen and refrigerated goods including specialized pallet management, mixed pallet handling, layer/case/each picking, cross-docking, slip sheeting, railcar/container unloading, and rainbow/mod pallet building. Designed for food manufacturers, importers, and high-volume e-commerce brands.
- Value Added Services High-touch activities including labeling and relabeling for food products, direct-to-store delivery (DSD) programs, club store repackaging, network modeling for optimization, e-commerce kitting and personalization, cross-docking for refrigerated products, and slip sheeting/specialized unloading. Core differentiator from standard cold storage providers.
- Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) Fulfillment End-to-end e-commerce cold chain fulfillment connecting brands to any marketplace nationwide. Features include intelligent order routing, smart cartonization with dry ice/gel pack optimization, each/case level picking, marketplace integration (Shopify, Amazon, WooCommerce, Big Commerce, NetSuite), and end-to-end tracking. Capable of reaching 97% of U.S. population in 2-day delivery or faster.
- Pharmaceutical Cold Chain Logistics CEIV Pharma-certified, FDA-registered temperature-controlled logistics for pharmaceuticals, biologics, vaccines, medical devices, and clinical trial materials, with continuous temperature monitoring and end-to-end chain-of-custody documentation. Operated by SCL Cold Chain as a wholly owned subsidiary of RealCold.
Quantifiable outcome
- 97% US population reached in 2-day delivery or faster via DTC network
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use RealCold
Customer profileNamed customers5 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
RealCold technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration6 records
Feature5 records
RealCold partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and secondary.
- SCL Cold ChaincoreAcquisition bringing CEIV Pharma certification, FDA-registered facilities, and pharmaceutical cold chain expertise. SCL operates end-to-end chain-of-custody model with continuous monitoring infrastructure. Dallas-based company will continue operating under existing identity as part of RealCold.
- Blue YondercoreWarehouse Management System (WMS) deployment across RealCold's growing national network for inventory management, supply chain visibility, and operational optimization. RealCold selected Blue Yonder to optimize warehouse operations across its cold chain logistics network.
- RussosecondaryDevelopment partner for the East Hanover, New Jersey cold storage project. Joint groundbreaking with Onyx for 380,000 sq. ft. facility development at former Novartis site.
- OnyxsecondaryDevelopment partner for the East Hanover, New Jersey cold storage project. Joint groundbreaking with Russo for 380,000 sq. ft. facility development.
- Forte FrozencoreAcquired in December 2023 to strengthen national cold chain footprint. Forte Frozen was one of the predominant cold and frozen DTC providers, bringing e-commerce fulfillment capabilities to RealCold's platform.
Scale indicators8 records
Recent moves12 records
Expansion highlights7 records
RealCold competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Lineage Logistics: The largest global temperature-controlled warehousing operator with approximately 2.7 billion cubic feet of capacity. Direct competitor to RealCold in food and pharma cold storage, with overlapping customer base of food manufacturers and grocers, and similar VAS and DTC service offerings.
- Americold Logistics: Second-largest global cold storage operator with approximately 1.4 billion cubic feet across more than 250 facilities. Direct competitor offering temperature-controlled storage, handling, and VAS, and a place where RealCold's CEO Keith Goldsmith previously served as EVP and CCO.
- United States Cold Storage (USCS): Major U.S. cold storage operator serving food manufacturers and grocers. Direct competitor with overlapping customer base; RealCold's CCO Marty Steinmetz spent nearly 16 years at USCS as VP of Strategic Partnerships.
- Burris Logistics: U.S. cold storage and logistics company operating refrigerated warehouses and providing temperature-controlled distribution to food retailers, foodservice, and processors. Comparable in scale and customer mix to RealCold.
- Interstate Warehousing: Family-owned U.S. cold storage operator with a national network of temperature-controlled facilities serving food manufacturers, retailers, and distributors. Comparable in service mix (storage, handling, VAS) to RealCold.
- Nordic Cold Storage: U.S. cold storage operator with a smaller but growing footprint, providing temperature-controlled warehousing, blast freezing, and VAS. Directly comparable to RealCold in operating model and target customer segments.
Regional players
- Congebec: Canadian cold storage and logistics company with cross-border operations into the U.S. Comparable in service offerings (multi-temperature storage, VAS, food-grade certified), with geographic overlap in select U.S. markets.
Broad incumbents
- DHL Supply Chain (Cold Chain): Global 3PL with significant cold chain capabilities for food and pharma. Overlaps with RealCold on temperature-controlled storage and distribution but as part of a much broader logistics portfolio rather than a cold-chain specialist.
- UPS Healthcare (Cold Chain): Global logistics provider with dedicated cold chain capabilities including temperature-controlled warehousing, transportation, and pharma-grade monitoring. Direct overlap with RealCold's SCL-acquired pharma cold chain vertical, though UPS is a much broader incumbent.
- FedEx Custom Critical: FedEx division providing time-sensitive and temperature-controlled transportation, including cold chain solutions for life sciences and healthcare. Competes with RealCold's pharma vertical as a broad logistics incumbent.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
RealCold social profiles
Digital presenceRealCold compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance6 records
RealCold financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
RealCold leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles12 records
RealCold subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries2 records
RealCold funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
RealCold M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A2 records
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about RealCold
What does RealCold do?
RealCold provides temperature-controlled storage, handling, value-added services, and direct-to-consumer cold chain fulfillment across a national network of 8 facilities with 61+ million cubic feet of capacity. The company serves food manufacturers, grocers, food service providers, digital native brands, and pharmaceutical companies with multi-temperature storage, e-commerce fulfillment integrated to major marketplaces, and value-added capabilities such as labeling, kitting, and direct-to-store delivery.
Is RealCold a public or private company?
RealCold is a private company. It is classified as private equity controlled and is currently operating.
When was RealCold founded?
RealCold was founded in 2022. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is RealCold based?
RealCold is headquartered in Lakeland, United States, in the North America region.
How does RealCold make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Temperature-Controlled Storage is the primary driver. The others are value-Added Services, direct-to-Consumer Fulfillment and handling and Pallet Services.
Who are RealCold's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Lineage Logistics, Americold Logistics, United States Cold Storage (USCS), Burris Logistics, Interstate Warehousing and Nordic Cold Storage. Congebec is listed as a regional player. Broad incumbents are DHL Supply Chain (Cold Chain), UPS Healthcare (Cold Chain) and FedEx Custom Critical.
Does RealCold have an API?
No public API is recorded for RealCold.
What industry is RealCold in?
RealCold's product category is Cold Chain Logistics & Temperature-Controlled Warehousing. Its primary akta.pro industry code is AFAOAFAE, Temperature-Controlled Distribution Centers (DCs), with a secondary code of TLALABAH, Medical Devices & Diagnostics Temperature-Controlled Storage. Its NAICS code is 493120.