Excellent article in a recent Suplly Chain Management Review about the 7 keys to facility location : http://www.scmr.com/article/CA6558638.html?rssid=68

I totally agree in the fact that computer models can’t do everything and that a visit, on site, is the best complement. Local Development agencies (like the one I work in) can help in “humanizing” the location models: we help companies to visit the potential sites (buildings or lands) for their future facility and most of all, to meet the right partners and connexions locally. This service is pre-paid by the regions, or area, the development agency covers, so…. it’s worth the try and is much complementary to the classical computer models !

I posted several videos (in French only), I should say ‘interviews’, about new places to invest in logistics in Western France, on my French blog: http://www.western-france.info/logistique
If you want to have a brief overview about the outcoming places to invest, check out the videos. You’ll learn a bit more about Laval, Saumur, Angouleme, Le Mans… and many more coming.

The subject will be widely debated at the coming SITL next March.

On one side, from a European point of view, the new locations for logistics and supply chain investments are further East. Poland, Roumania, Czech Republic, Slovakia are part of these new promising locations. Investors such as PROLOGIS, PANATTONI or PARKRIDGE are developping massive logistic centers overthere.

On the other side, from a more Frenchie (!) point of view, the new promising locations within France are further West. A new forum about the subject will take place next week in Paris La Défense: EXPANDI and we’ll see that locations such as Le Mans, Nantes Saint-Nazaire, Angers, Laval and Angoulême are among the next locations for good investments in logistics. Employment and consumption are there to foster future investments. I talked with Philippe ROUGé, Development Director of GSE last week about the subject. He gives his feelings (sorry, in French only).

See you there ? SITL ? EXPANDI ?

According to the very interesting report issued by PROLOGIS (see previous post), France’s prototypical modern distribution facility spans at least 10,000 square meters of floorspace with ceiling heights of at least 9 metres, load-bearing floors to support at least 5 tons per m², one loading dock for every 1,000 m², and truck-turning areas of at least 35 metres.

This is the prototypical distribution facility and if the facility is also quadri-modal, it becomes the “ideal” distribution facility !!!!!!!

waaww, that is a title for sure. It’s not mine, it is the title of the very very interesting report about France’s Distribution and Warehouse markets released by the developer PROLOGIS (the one).
A dozen of pages that give you an extremely good overview of the market in France, history included. I found very good information in it and I can only recommend it at 100%.

One of the conclusions says:
“With its central location and good transportation system, many companies have incorporated markets in France into their pan-European distribution networks. Property investors have profited handsomely from this trend, and can look forward to continued healthy returns in the future.”

I noticed more particularly 4 things :
1. France’s industrial sector accounts for about 13% of the French GDP, about the same as it was 20 years ago despite the global trends toward outsourcing and offshoring. (and that is the case in Western France, where industry is doing really well along with services)
2. France is a central location to include in any pan-European distribution/logistics strategy, connecting the Northern European ports and population centres in the Netherlands and Belgium with those in Southern Europe. (and that is the case with Western France, ideally located for the distribution of UK, France, Spain and Portugal markets.)
3. France did not have any logistics property markets until the early to mid-1990s.
4. France has an ample supply of developable land with low fluctuation in terms of regular market cycles (due to the fact that local municipalities tightly control pricing and release for sale and development). (and that is the case in Western France with land at attractive prices going from 5€/sq.m to 25€/sq.m.)

Get the report => click here

The famous bottles of Cognac are shipped weekly from Cognac to the port of Le Havre by ……. train !
2 trains of 30 cars transport the Cognac bottles every week. The bottles are then shipped to Asia.
The trains come back to Cognac with wood and goods for the retail market.

good to know !!

This is it ! IKEA finally received approval for the implemantation of a logistics platform in Fos-sur-Mer near Marseille. The site should employ about 500 persons within 3 years time.
With a platform in Lyon and Marseille, the Eastern south of France is well supplied by the Swedish group. Further West, there is still room for another platform.

The western part of France hosts about 5 stores among which the store of Nantes which is the 2nd in France in terms of sales (2.7 millions of customers per year !). Our Atlantic seaports (Nantes-Saint Nazaire and La Rochelle) can easily ship and receive the goods with feeder lines from Northern European ports. The Swedish group is welcome anytime !

Brigitte MICHAUD has received the prize for the logistics manager of the year last week in Paris. The award was given during the Assises de la Logistique.

Besides the fact that it is a woman, there is another great news with this award, it is because the project that was carried out by Brigitte MICHAUD and her company (she is logistics manager of RECKITT BENCKISER) is just unique.
Everybody has been talking about it since a year now: the HECORE project is good news for modern logistics and environmental issues. It gathers 3 large companies (RECKITT BENCKISER, HENKEL and COLGATE) around a mutualisation of the transport, storage and order management.

Mrs MICHAUD has a sound background in the field of logistics. I was also impressed by the originality of the ceremony : a TV show animated by Marianne Kottenhoff (journalist at LCI) around big names such as GSE, PROLOGIS, NISSAN FORKLIFT et EOL.

Once again I urge upon showing that the demand for logistics is increasing in the Western part of France. In the south west of course, but also around Nantes. I just found this complete outlook from Goodman Property Investors called “Continental European Logistics Market” on the web and was quite happy to see that :
“Demand is finally materialising beyond the north-south axis, especially in the west (Nantes) and in the south west (Bordeaux and Toulouse), where retailers have established their locations (Conforama in Toulouse and Angers, CDiscount in Bordeaux, Point P and Systeme U in Nantes for instance).”
……… YES !!!!! exactly ! This is just CORRECT, just read my previous articles !!
Western France is an EMERGING LOCATION able to meet the appetite of investors.
Read the rest of this entry »

Prologis said (via Ranald HAHN, Southern Europe Vice-President) that the Western part of France is the region where the company is looking for opportunities for its customers.
Of course, major regions for the American leader are Lyon, Orléans, Marseille, Le Havre, Lille or Strasbourg…. but, long-term investment in logistics platforms could also go West.

I read it in Les Echos, “Horizons Les régions” of June 2007