Convenience specialist Lekkerland, a subsidiary of the REWE Group, plans to open a warehouse in the municipality of Wedemark, approximately 25 kilometres north of Hanover.
The central warehouse for northern Germany, located in the Gailhof industrial area, is expected to open at the end of 2022 and create around 340 jobs over the next few years.
Lekkerland was purchased by the Rewe Group in 2019, as it looked to solidify its hold on the convenience store format across Europe and Germany.
Lekkerland
Lekkerland offers innovative services, tailor-made logistics, and a wide range of wholesale products for on-the-go consumption.
The group offers its products at petrol station shops, kiosks, convenience stores, bakeries, food retailers, and quick-service restaurants.
The convenience industry has been growing for a number of years due to increasing mobility and a higher number of meals consumed outside the home.
The new building in Wedemark is part of the retailer's 'logistics network of the future' plan, which will run until 2030, the company added.
The plan describes the future logistics structure of Lekkerland in Germany, focusing on catering to consumers' demand in the future.
Dirk Klein-Hietpas, senior vice president of logistics and supply chain management at Lekkerland, said, "We are very happy that the municipality of Wedemark enables us to locate our future central warehouse for northern Germany in the Gailhof industrial area.
"We look forward to continued good cooperation with everyone involved and to becoming part of the community and [we] want to be a good neighbour."
Warehouse
The new warehouse will have a storage area of around 35,000 square metres, and Lekkerland will store chilled and non-chilled food products, including bread rolls, salads, wraps, and drinks.
The warehouse is placed in an approximately 70,000 square-metre property, from which the group will supply to customers in northern Germany and other company locations.
The new logistics centre, designed with a focus on sustainability, blends in with its surrounding landscape.
It also has provisions for creating a green area on the roof and the installation of solar panels.
© 2021 European Supermarket Magazine. Article by Conor Farrelly. For more Supply Chain news, click here. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.