APS Fulfillment, Inc. (www.APSFulfillment.com), one of the nation’s leading cost-effective fulfillment and integrated direct mail marketing companies, is weighing in on a report from Colliers International’s Logistics & Transportation Solutions Group showing that North American warehousing construction is at record levels as retailers adjust their distribution network to accommodate a surge in online sales. (Source: Colliers International, “Big-Box Market Report,” March 2, 2016; http://www.colliers.com/-/media/files/marketresearch/unitedstates/2016-Logistics-Transportation/2016-Logistics-Transportation-Big-Box-Report.pdf?la=en-us&submissionGuid=ef81f058-6d4b-472b-a761-4151bba592e2.)
In particular, the building of “big box” warehouse space has increased more than 575% over the last five years, from nine million square feet in 2011 to 61 million square feet in 2015. With approximately 93% of the space occupied, a further 74 million square feet will be delivered in 2016, according to the report. (Ibid.)
“The surge in demand for warehousing space comes on the heels of increased online consumer spending. Brands are under intense competitive pressure to deliver their products as quickly as possible,” says Charles Aultman, president of APS Fulfillment, Inc. “As a result, many of the new warehouses are being built near large urban areas and close to transportation hubs such as ports and rail lines.”
Aultman explains that in addition to 300,000-square-foot big-box warehouses, there is increased demand for warehouses under 200,000 square-feet in high-population urban areas. Thanks to growing e-commerce sales, merchants are outsourcing their warehousing and fulfillment needs to urban warehouses to diversify their distribution channels. (Ibid.)
Whereas big-box warehouses are often built further out from urban centers, sub-300,000-square-foot warehousing and fulfillment providers tend to be located in urban areas where costs are much more manageable for small- and medium-sized businesses.
“APS Fulfillment is conveniently located in Southern Florida, just minutes from Interstate 95 and only 40 minutes from the Miami International Airport,” Aultman adds. “It is also just 20 minutes from the Port Everglades, the top port in Florida, and 30 minutes from the Port of Miami. These ports are two of North America’s largest export hubs and are in close proximity to South America, the Panama Canal, and Europe.”
“Because of this close proximity and APS Fulfillment’s state-of-the-art inventory technology and real-time-shipping solutions, businesses can have their products received, inventoried, and shipped in just two days,” Aultman concludes.
APS Fulfillment, Inc. is one of the United States’ leading cost-effective fulfillment and integrated direct mail marketing companies, offering affordable and real-time fulfillment services to small, medium, and large companies.