Made.com is more than doubling its Essex warehousing operations as it expands across the UK and Europe.
The design-led furniture and homewares business is doubling its operations at the London Gateway Logistics Park in Tilbury, owned by DP World, to 570,000 sq ft – from 225,000 sq ft at the moment. The move, expected to create up to 100 new administrative and warehousing jobs, will provide space for more stock as the company looks to cut the time from customer order to fulfilment. The first phase of the new warehousing will be ready this summer, with a second phase set to be completed next April.
Made, founded in 2010 with a promise of cutting out the retail middleman from the customer and furniture designer relationship, now sells to eight markets including the UK, France and Germany online and from seven showrooms. It operates a data-led ‘just in time’ supply chain, producing small batches of goods in order to reduce waste, with nine new collections launched each week, and around 6,000 lines available at any one time.
The current extension of its warehousing is part of a long-term strategy to scale its business across the UK and Europe.
Nicola Thompson, chief operating officer at Made.com, says: “We are thrilled to expand our warehousing operations at London Gateway as we respond to continued growth in customer demand for our exclusive designs.
“Combined with our innovative ‘just in time’ supply chain model, this expansion of our warehousing facility in Tilbury is an exciting step towards achieving our long-term strategy to grow the business sustainably, as we continue to invest in operational efficiency and become the design destination for digital natives.”
