Kingfisher : opens new distribution centre in Poland

Kingfisher plc, the European home improvement company, is to open a new distribution centre in Poland to support its growing Castorama business there.

Construction work on the 100,000 square metre site, which is the size of more than 20 football pitches, will start in April and is scheduled for completion in November 2017. The site is located in Strykow in central Poland, which is a popular and cost effective choice for distribution facilities because of its motorway infrastructure. The new site will be run by XPO Logistics on behalf of Kingfisher's Castorama business.

Castorama has 75 stores in Poland and employs more than 11,500 staff. It is a fast-growing business which reported sales of £1.2 billion in Poland last year, up 10% on the previous year. Castorama Poland opened two new stores last year and plans to open one further store this year.

The new Strykow distribution centre will be Castorama Poland's second distribution facility in the town. The purpose-built site will be developed in two phases in partnership with Panattoni, the industrial development company. The initial construction phase will be 50,000 square metres and then gradually expanded to 100,000 square metres as required.

It will support the sales growth of Castorama Poland by enabling stock to be distributed more efficiently to stores, thus maximising product availability for customers whether they have bought an item in store or via digital channels. In addition, it will be able to consolidate stock from Eastern European suppliers for Kingfisher's other European businesses, which include home improvement operations in France, Spain and Germany, as well as B&Q and Screwfix in the UK. It can also act as a regional hub for operations in Romania and Russia.

The distribution centre will create up to 300 jobs in the final phase, bringing significant employment opportunities to the local community.

Sustainability solutions have also been incorporated, including LED lighting with motion detectors, which will be installed to reduce energy consumption during periods of low activity.

Krzysztof Maśny, Supply Chain Management Director, Castorama Poland, commented: 'The decision to build a new distribution centre in Strykow was taken to ensure we have the logistics infrastructure to support the needs of our expanding business in Poland. The new facility will help support improved availability of products for customers in our stores and via digital channels, allowing them to get what they want, when they need it. This helps achieve Castorama Poland's main goal, which is to make home improvement shopping as easy as possible for all its customers.'