Hasbro has opened a 600,000-square-foot distribution center in Georgia that the company expects will drive significant cost savings and efficiency gains in its fulfillment network.
The Midway, Georgia, facility, run by warehouse and logistics provider GXO, lets the toymaker shrink its U.S. distribution nodes from five to three, cutting overhead and lowering transportation and 3PL costs, Colin Regnier, SVP of global logistics and planning, told Supply Chain Dive.
The facility, which accounts for about 25% to 30% of Hasbro's U.S. distribution footprint, will support both brick-and-mortar retail partners and direct-to-consumer operations while reducing DTC order lead times by two to three days, Regnier said.
"What we found is that, from a cost perspective, building a best-in-class facility, changing our lease models, and then bringing in the DTC business drove it substantial amount of cost savings through overhead consolidation and rate resets," Regnier said.
Hasbro expects the new distribution hub, which will create up to 70 full-time jobs, to generate about $8 million in annual productivity savings, Regnier said.
Located near the Port of Savannah, the Georgia site supports Hasbro’s distribution nodes in Chino, California, and Joliet, Illinois, adding resilience to the network, Regnier said. The Chino site serves the West Coast, and the Joliet site serves the Midwest and the Northeast.
"If there's disruption, we have alternatives in how we bring product into the country," Regnier said.
Hasbro operates five sites out of its 24 warehouses globally, but in the U.S., it has traditionally relied on 3PLs, Regnier said.
The Georgia site is the first U.S. distribution center Hasbro has developed and branded with its name, according to the company. Hasbro has a 10-year lease through May 30, 2036, with two five-year extension options, from Peachtree Group, a commercial real estate investment firm that recently acquired the facility.
