Polska LPP's huge European distribution centre

The new distribution centre at CTPark Bucharest West near Bucharest, in the municipality of Bolintin-Deal, is the second warehouse facility in Romania managed by the Gdansk-based company. Construction of the centre started in January 2023, and at the beginning of December, the company started to stock the facility and the first logistics operations. The new warehouse is dedicated to supplying a cluster of southern markets - Romanian, Bulgarian, Hungarian, Croatian, Serbian and Greek, as well as North Macedonia. Automation solutions will enable the operator to support 450 showrooms simultaneously and ship up to 6 mln items of assortment per week.

The location of the distribution centre in southern Europe was determined by the so-called centre of gravity relative to the distance of the group's network of stationary showrooms. At the end of Q4 of the 2023/24 financial year, the portfolio of LPP brands in this region will already include more than 500 shops, and in the coming years the company intends to continue expansion in Romania or Greece, among others. Logistical support for the supply of such an expanded sales network is therefore crucial for the implementation of the Group's business strategy.
Sebastian Sołtys, CEO of LPP Logistics

The warehouse is also to support deliveries to the Romanian fulfilment centre and to serve as a cross-dock hub for some deliveries from Poland. Thanks to its strategic location, the warehouse provides the possibility to diversify sea transport through the Black Sea port of Constanta, as well as securing an alternative supply route to the Ukrainian market. The use of the infrastructure of the largest port in Romania also allows the group to receive orders directly from Asian suppliers.

The 65,000 sq m facility has a capacity of 45,000 pallet spaces and allows for the storage of up to 720,000 cartons. The operation of the distribution centre will be supported by a 140 m long automatic sorter. In the receiving and dispatch area, a line of automatic conveyors 1.2 km long has been designed, integrated with label applicators or volumetric gates. Supporting the warehouse operation is also provided by a fleet of around 40 multifunctional forklift trucks.

The facility is in the process of BREEAM certification. The centre is powered by renewable energy sources thanks to roof-mounted solar panels with an area of 10,000 sqm and a total capacity of 2 MW. The power supply from the photovoltaic installation will cover 30 pct of its energy needs.