In 2020 and 2021 there was a record take up of warehouse space in the UK, with both years exceeding 50 million square feet of new leases signed. In addition, the Q4 take up in 2021 was a record for a single quarter, showing that the demand for warehousing in the UK shows no sign of slowing down. What makes these figures more remarkable is that in the same period, there has been a decline in client dedicated units and large (> 400k sq ft) units. This indicates that occupiers have had an immediate storage requirement and have been willing in many cases to accept sub-optimal plots in terms of size, location, and design to secure the immediate capacity.
Whilst demand continues to grow, supply of available warehousing is at an all time low, with a current vacancy rate of less than 3% of all available UK warehousing. Developers have tried to respond to this, with circa 20m square feet under construction. However, as demand outstrips supply, average rents continue to increase by around 15% pa.
Now is a good time to review your current warehousing strategy and operations to ensure that they are fully optimised and all space is maximised. In particular:
- Critically review your stocking policy and actively work to reduce overstocked product
- Optimise racking and shelving, maximising all available height
- Remove all obsolete stock and non-core warehouse items
- The installation of a mezzanine
- Redesign floor plans and organise workstations
- Review WMS master data driving storage location methodology
Davies & Robson have helped numerous clients review their warehousing operations and improve operational efficiency. We also support clients in the development of their logistics strategy. Before running out of warehouse space, or investing in expensive new storage solutions, please call us on 01327 349090.