Home24, Europe’s largest online furniture store, started operations today at a new 60,000 sqm logistics centre in Walsrode, which has been developed by leading global property group Goodman. All of Home24’s European target markets will be supplied from the location in Lower Saxony, with customers benefiting from greater product availability and shorter delivery times. The company formally opened the warehouse together with Goodman, state premier Stephan Weil and Mayor Helma Spöring.

The German furniture market has an annual turnover of around €40 billion and the share of online retail grows rapidly. Home24 is one of the biggest players in the online furniture business in Europe and is reinforcing its competitiveness through the expansion of its logistics capabilities. Home24’s European logistics network, servicing the target markets of Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, France and Italy, now comprises four facilities with a total area of 128,000 sqm.

New scale for the online furniture business
With around 60,000 sqm, the warehouse in Walsrode will enable Home24 to expand the scale of its operations. The facility is operated directly by Home24, as is the 35,000 sqm logistics centre in Ludwigsfelde near Berlin where operations started in 2014, with the online retailer creating up to 250 new jobs at the Lower Saxony logistics centre. The company will use the facility in Walsrode mainly for large-sized products that are delivered to the customer by a haulage company, whereas parcel shipments will be handled primarily at the logistics centre in Ludwigsfelde. Accordingly, Home24 is restructuring its logistics strategy for its complete range of around 180,000 products.

Growing business and increasing availability
“Our business has grown enormously last year and the demand for online furniture increases rapidly. That is why we massively expand our logistics capacities. With our biggest warehouse so far we have positioned our company for further growth. In addition to this we significantly increase the availability of our products with the new facility in Walsrode,” said Axel Hefer, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operations Officer of Home24 AG. “The fact that we are able to start operations at our new logistics centre in Walsrode today is due to the outstanding co-operation with our project partners and the responsible institutions, in particular the state of Lower Saxony and the town of Walsrode.”

Lower Saxony state premier Stephan Weil said: ““Ecommerce has and will continue to play an important role in the economic growth and development of the State of Lower Saxony. In turn, online business needs storage space at interesting logistics locations with strong infrastructure, as offered here in the A27 industrial park as well as in many other locations in Lower Saxony. We are delighted that a company as successful as Home24 is making use of these advantages and creating new jobs.”

Home24 Walsrode

Co-operation with Goodman
For both of the self-operated facilities, in Walsrode and Ludwigsfelde, Home24 worked together with Goodman, which provided its extensive German and global experience in logistic real estate development for ecommerce. Developments by Goodman cover a total of over one million sqm for various online retailers at different sites across Germany. To date, four large ecommerce companies have commissioned Goodman to develop logistics properties, with three of them as repeat customers.

“Today, we celebrate the opening in Walsrode with Home24 and, at the same time, we are developing a new ecommerce logistics centre in Lahr. This is a clear indication that online retail in Germany is continuing to grow and will be a major contributor to our growth,” said Christof Prange, Head of Business Development at Goodman Germany.

Goodman adapts its property solutions to meet the operational requirements of its customers and delivers its new developments within the shortest time and with absolute reliability, which is critical to the execution of its customers’ growth strategies.

The property in Walsrode
The 60,000 sqm property for Home24 in Walsrode was completed within seven months. It includes approximately 58,500 sqm of storage space and 1,000 sqm of mezzanine space. The remaining 1,500 sqm are divided between offices and social spaces. The free hall height of 12.00 m facilitates Home24’s storage of furniture and accessories, such as large-sized sofas and cupboards. A total of 75 loading gates speed up the processes for incoming and outgoing delivery of goods.

Strategic location in North Germany
The location in Walsrode offers Home24 optimal connections to the A27 motorway towards Bremen and the A7 motorway towards Hamburg and Hannover. All three urban areas can be reached by truck in under 60 minutes. The international freight airport of Hanover is only 35 minutes away from the industrial park. Walsrode also offers convenient access to the major shipping points of Jade-Weser-Port and the Port of Hamburg.

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