Otto is outsourcing part of logistics to Poland
German ecommerce giant Otto has announced that it is outsourcing part of its own logistics. The Group is building a shipping center in Poland. From the new location, orders will be picked and shipped to German customers.
The German Otto Group recently announced that its revenue dropped 9 percent in 2023, reaching 10.8 billion euros in total. At the same time, online department store Otto expanded the amount of marketplace partners by 33 percent, to more than 6,500. The company also announced that it was opening up the marketplace to European sellers.
Investment of 150 million euros
To drive further ecommerce growth, the company has invested in its logistics operations. The company invested over 150 million euros recently, in the construction of a 16,300 square meter automated shuttle warehouse in Germany. It is expected to be operating this summer. The company wants to process orders in a couple of hours and offer same-day delivery with this warehouse.
‘Otto Group is launching an automated shuttle warehouse this summer.’
Otto’s logistics are handled by the Hermes Fulfillment Group, which is Otto Group’s own logistics arm. It already has several locations within Germany, as well as locations in Switzerland, Italy, the Czech Republic and Poland.
New shipping center in Poland
The Hermes Fulfillment Group is now adding a new shipping center in Poland. It is the first time that the Group is building a completely new location outside of Germany. The fulfillment center will be 118,000 square meters in total and will start operations in the fall of this year. From there, up to 1,900 employees will store, pick and ship Otto goods to German customers.
‘Poland is very central for a European company like ours.’
According to the company, a strong European location network with a focus on Germany is the basis for an optimal position for online trading in the future. “Poland is very central for a European company like ours. Above all, we will be able to deliver from Iłowa to large parts of Germany the day after the order is placed. Politics and administration supported us very well in the implementation. At the same time, we are expanding our warehouse logistics at German locations”, said Michael Otto, Chairman of Otto Group’s supervisory board and former CEO.
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