New Times: New Innovations

 By the mid 1960's three factors had dramatically altered the role of the wholesaler:

• Small retailers began to follow Big D's lead, opening multiple retail store locations. By the 1970s, many retailers operated eleven or more stores, becoming known as supermarket chains.
• As supermarket chains grew, they needed to be located at greater distances from each other so not to compete for the same customers. As a result of this, many chains consolidated and closed their inefficient and outdated warehouses.
• This suddenly generated tremendous opportunities for wholesalers to provide buying, warehousing and distribution services to the growing supermarket chains.

In 1974, Lester's son Rick joined the company. By this time, C&S had grown to annual sales of $14 million. However, the lack of a modern warehouse facility severely hindered further growth. The Pullman Street warehouse was more than 100 years old and lacked the design structure necessary to satisfy modern food wholesale techniques. Its ceilings were too low and could not efficiently accommodate the growth that C&S hoped to achieve.