St Modwen signs Ocado for Bristol fulfilment centre

St Modwen Properties has agreed a deal to let a 150,000 sq ft warehouse in Avonmouth, Bristol, to Ocado Group. The warehouse will become the online supermarket’s first “mini” customer fulfilment centre and will have the capacity for more than 30,000 orders per week. It is expected to open by early 2021 and will create around 815 jobs. The agreement brings Ocado’s number of fulfilment centres to six. Its fifth centre, which will handle around 85,000 orders per week, is currently under construction at Purfleet, Essex. Ocado said it expected the Bristol hub to achieve productivity “close to that in our standard facilities”. The supermarket aims to set up smaller facilities in areas that are not suitable for larger centres. Tim Steiner, chief executive of Ocado Group, said: “The Ocado Smart Platform is constantly evolving as we innovate to adapt to changing customer needs. “Our mission is to deliver the future of online shopping today, and we believe we are succeeding.” Peter Davies, development director at St Modwen’s industrial and logistics business, said: “Ocado Retail is a strong addition to our growing list of high-quality customers and the company’s developing offering in the South West will bring significant investment in the regional economy and support hundreds of new jobs.” Gerald Eve advised Ocado on the deal, while Knight Frank and Alder King acted for St Modwen.   To send feedback, e-mail pui-guan.man@egi.co.uk or tweet @PuiGuanM or @estatesgazette