What Pierless Fish does

Pierless Fish is a Brooklyn-based wholesale seafood purveyor founded in 1999 by Robert "Bobby" DeMasco, supplying fresh and sustainably-sourced fish and shellfish to restaurants, chefs, hotels, and foodservice operators across the New York metropolitan area. The company's operations are anchored by a state-of-the-art, HACCP-certified processing facility in Sunset Park, Brooklyn (relocated there from the Brooklyn Navy Yard in 2011) that includes species-specific temperature-controlled refrigeration rooms, shrimp peeling and deveining equipment, and an on-site butchery team with over 100 combined years of experience handling 40-plus fish varieties, 14-plus shellfish categories, and specialty items such as caviar, roe, and uni. Products are delivered via a company-owned fleet of refrigerated trucks maintained at 34°F, with next-day delivery inside a 12-hour order-to-door window across NYC, upstate New York (Peekskill), and parts of Connecticut (Greenwich/Westport).

The core revenue model is wholesale food service distribution on unit pricing with a $100 order minimum and free delivery above threshold, complemented by value-added custom cut services (butterflying, pin bone removal, sashimi slicing, portioning, shrimp processing) that integrate into chef prep workflows. Customers order through a SmartShop online platform that preserves account-specific menus and reorder history, or via a direct sales team reachable by phone and email. Pierless generated a temporary direct-to-consumer home delivery stream during COVID-19 (April 2020, $40 minimum, Brooklyn/Manhattan/Queens) but has since discontinued it and returned focus to wholesale. Since May 2020, Pierless has operated as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Baldor Specialty Foods following a court-ordered asset auction after a December 2019 bankruptcy filing, while continuing to run independently from the Sunset Park facility and leveraging Baldor's broader 15,000-customer distribution network across the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic.

Name

Pierless Fish

Legal name

Baldor Specialty Foods, Inc.

Website

https://pierlessfish.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Pierless Fish is a Brooklyn-based wholesale seafood purveyor supplying sustainably-sourced fresh fish and shellfish to restaurants, hotels, and chefs across the New York metropolitan area. As a Baldor Specialty Foods subsidiary, it operates a HACCP-certified Sunset Park facility offering refrigerated delivery and custom butchery services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Wholesale Seafood Distribution

NAICS

Fish and Seafood Merchant Wholesalers (42446), Seafood Product Preparation and Packaging (31171)

SIC

Prepared Fresh Or Frozen Fish & Seafoods (2092), Wholesale-Groceries & Related Products (5140)

akta.pro primary industry

Frozen Meat, Poultry & Seafood Wholesale (AFAIAHAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Shellfish Wholesale (Crustaceans & Mollusks) (AFAIADAF), Chilled/Refrigerated Prepared Meat & Seafood Meals (AFANAFAD)

Keywords

• Wholesale seafood distribution
• Fresh fish supply
• Shellfish distribution
• Custom seafood processing
• Food service seafood

Headquarters

HQ city

Brooklyn

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Wholesale Food Service Distribution: Primary revenue stream from supplying fresh, high-quality fish and shellfish to restaurants, hotels, and foodservice establishments throughout the New York metropolitan area. Products are processed and delivered fresh, typically within 12 hours of ordering.
2. Home Delivery (Discontinued): Temporary COVID-19 pivot offering direct-to-consumer home delivery of restaurant-quality seafood to individual customers in Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Queens. This service has since been discontinued.
3. Custom Cut Processing Services: Custom fabrication services including butterflying, pin bone removal, portioning, scaling, de-skinning, peeling and deveining shrimp. These value-added services are provided to chefs to save them time and labor.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Wholesale distribution of fresh and frozen fish and shellfish to restaurants, hotels, and food service establishments across the New York metropolitan area. Operates from a HACCP-certified facility in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, offering custom-cut processing, next-day refrigerated delivery, and specialty seafood items sourced with a focus on sustainability.

Product overview

Pierless Fish is a Brooklyn-based seafood wholesale distributor offering an integrated e-commerce platform for ordering fresh and frozen seafood products. The core offering consists of five product categories: Fish (40+ varieties including Tuna, Salmon, Halibut, Swordfish, and more), Shellfish (14 varieties including Lobster, Oysters, Scallops, Shrimp), Specialty items (Caviar, Eel, Frog Legs, Sushi), Bones & Collars (for stock and specialty preparations), and Odds & Ends (Shells, Tubs for serving). Added services include Custom Cut processing for portioning and preparation, Food Service delivery logistics, and SmartShop personalized ordering platform. Products are processed at a HACCP-certified Sunset Park facility and delivered via refrigerated trucks.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Fish Wholesale supply of fresh and frozen finfish (e.g., salmon, tuna, cod, snapper, fluke, branzino) sold to restaurants and food service operators in the NYC metro area.
• Shellfish Wholesale supply of shellfish varieties (e.g., shrimp, lobster, clams, oysters, mussels, scallops) for restaurant and food service kitchens.
• Specialty Specialty and seasonal seafood offerings beyond standard finfish and shellfish categories, including harder-to-source and premium items for chef-driven menus.
• Bones & Collars Wholesale seafood byproducts such as fish bones and collars sold to chefs and food service operators for stocks, soups, and broths.
• Custom Cut Custom seafood butchery and processing service — including portioning, filleting, scaling, deveining, and shrimp shelling — performed to chef specifications before delivery.
• Food Service Wholesale seafood distribution tailored to restaurants, hotels, country clubs, and upscale food markets, with next-day delivery by refrigerated truck across the NYC metropolitan area.

Quantifiable outcome

• Products delivered within 12 hours of ordering
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Baldor Specialty FoodscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 12 May 2020In May 2020, Baldor Specialty Foods acquired Pierless Fish in an asset purchase. Baldor is one of the largest wholesale importers and distributors of fresh produce and specialty foods in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions. Pierless Fish continues to operate independently from its Sunset Park facility, now benefiting from Baldor's distribution network and infrastructure to broaden reach to more restaurants and chefs.
• Parcelle WineminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorParcelle Wine curates and provides wine and liquor selection for Pierless Fish customers. Wines are sold separately under Parcelle Wines LLC, with separate credit card charges. Parcelle Wines operates under license from KSSWINE LLC.
• Shake ShackminorGTM or Marketing PartnerDuring COVID-19 pivot, Baldor launched Restaurant Partnership Series featuring meal kits. First partner was Shake Shack offering ShackBurger Kits with delivery to consumers.
• New Zealand King SalmoncoreOthersNew Zealand King Salmon supplies premium Regal King salmon and Ora King salmon to Pierless Fish. During COVID-19, Pierless Fish and parent Baldor promoted Ora King salmon to consumers as part of their retail pivot.
• City HarvestminorOthersPierless Fish parent Baldor partners with City Harvest to donate surplus food. In 2013, Baldor donated nearly 500,000 pounds of food to City Harvest to help feed millions of New Yorkers.
• Lustgarten FoundationminorOthersBaldor actively supports the Lustgarten Foundation in their efforts to find a cure for pancreatic cancer. Founder Kevin Murphy was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2010 and passed away in 2013. Baldor is a major sponsor of their Annual Cure for Pancreatic Cancer Walk in Manhattan.
• Edible Schoolyard NYCminorOthersBaldor supports Edible Schoolyard NYC by donating ingredients for interactive cooking sessions where students prepare meals from produce they grow in schoolyard gardens.
• Part of the Solution (POTS)minorOthersPOTS is a fully functioning soup kitchen in the Bronx that serves family-style meals to those in need. Baldor supports this organization as part of their charitable giving program.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Lobster Place: Chelsea Market-based seafood wholesaler supplying restaurants and retail customers across NYC. Directly comparable as a specialty seafood distributor targeting chefs with curated fresh and frozen products.
• Citarella: NYC-based upscale fishmonger and specialty grocer with strong restaurant and retail seafood supply. Comparable for its premium positioning and curated seafood assortment targeting fine-dining chefs and consumers in the NYC metro.
• Fulton Fish Market: One of the largest wholesale seafood distributors in the U.S., based in NYC's Hunts Point. Operates a wholesale fish market serving restaurants and retailers across the Northeast, directly competing with Pierless for NYC foodservice accounts.
• Fortune Fish & Gourmet: Midwest-based specialty seafood and gourmet foods distributor serving restaurants, hotels, and grocers. Comparable as a broad-line specialty seafood wholesaler targeting professional chefs with value-added products.
• Browne Trading Company: Maine-based specialty seafood distributor and online retailer supplying restaurants and home cooks nationwide with premium and sustainable fish/shellfish. Comparable for its chef-focused wholesale business and curated, high-end seafood assortment.

Regional players

• Dietl & Company: Toronto-based seafood distributor serving Canadian restaurants and retailers with premium fresh and frozen seafood. Comparable as a regional specialty seafood wholesaler focused on chefs, but operating primarily in Canada rather than the U.S. Northeast.

Broad incumbents

• Baldor Specialty Foods: Pierless Fish's parent company and one of the largest specialty produce and food distributors in the Northeast. Comparable as a broad-line specialty foodservice distributor serving restaurants and hotels, but with much wider product breadth beyond seafood.
• Seattle Fish Co. Major U.S. specialty seafood distributor serving restaurants and retailers across the Midwest and Mountain West. Comparable for its broad-line restaurant-focused seafood distribution and value-added processing capabilities, though with a different geographic core.

Emerging players

• Sea to Table: American-sourced sustainable seafood company distributing wild-caught fish to restaurants and homes. Comparable for its mission-driven, traceable sourcing and chef/hospitality supply focus, though it operates at smaller scale and with more consumer-facing emphasis.

Others

• New Zealand King Salmon: Aquaculture producer and global supplier of Ora King and Regal King salmon, a key upstream supplier to Pierless Fish. Included as an ecosystem partner rather than a competitor — illustrates a shared premium/sustainable-sourcing positioning in the specialty salmon category.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/PierlessFishBK
• Facebookfacebook.com/pierlessfishbk
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/baldor-specialty-foods

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Pierless Fish