Market Overview
The warehousing and storage services market is expected to register a CAGR of 10% during the forecast period, 2021- 2026. Warehousing and storage services provide storage for another company or organization's property, including parts, equipment, vehicles, products, and perishable goods.
The COVID -19 pandemic has forced shippers to rethink their supplier networks, stage inventory to balance against current demand fluctuations, and lean on internal or 3PL-provided freight visibility solutions. So far, the impact has generally higher volumes for 3PL companies and increased hours to manage at most warehouses. The pandemic impact has further resulted in many warehouses running busier than ever, mainly catering to food products, pharmaceuticals, and essential household goods. Amazon, Aldi, Asda, and Lidl have all reported a need to increase their capacities and hire an additional warehouse workforce. In April 2020, Amazon announced plans to hire 100,000 new warehouse workers to cover for sick employees and respond to the surge in orders from customers practicing social distancing.
The increasing demand for an omnichannel retailing model is expected to drive the market. In 2019, Pepperfry announced that it was investing USD 12 million (over INR 85 crore) in 2020 to set up over 100 offline stores and strengthen its supply chain operations to reach more customers. Though customers are embracing the online buying trend, they still prefer to 'touch and feel' in the pre-purchase process, especially before ordering big-ticket products such as furniture. Therefore, such preferences are expected to increase the customer base, resulting in expanding the warehouse and storage market.
Further, over the next couple of years, industrial warehousing is expected to grow in India's manufacturing units. As things stand, across eight Indian cities, NCR, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Pune, Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad, and Ahmedabad, the quality warehousing stock totalled 211 million sq. ft in 2019. The stock was expected to increase to 253 million sq. ft in 2020 and further to nearly 300 million sq. ft in 2021, according to JLL, a real estate services firm. According to a report by Make In India, the Indian logistics and SCM (supply chain management) sector was currently valued at USD 165 billion, with growth expected to reach USD 215 billion by the end of 2020. Furthermore, the industry has employed more than 22 million people and pushed the rank of India from 54 to 44 in the World Bank's Logistics Performance Index (LPI) 2018, in terms of overall logistics performance.
Further, the demand to slow inbound container flows is growing as some retailers and manufacturers fail to pick up containers because warehouses are full or closed. This is due to not being deemed essential service providers responding to COVID-19. To address such issues, container lines are offering shippers options to reduce demurrage fees by allowing them to store containers at their properties. In March 2020, Mediterranean Shipping Co. announced a "Suspension of Transit" (SOT) program at six transit hubs in Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, the Americas, and Europe. The service offering is targeted at beneficial cargo owners (BCOs) and cargo consolidators who need immediate container storage space.
Warehousing and storage services provide storage for companies or organizations' property, including parts, equipment, products, and perishable goods. This often includes inventory management and distribution. Storage can be temporary or on a long-term contractual basis. Warehouse and storage accommodations may consist of environmental regulations, such as temperature and humidity control, to improve product lifespan or limit item degradation. Warehouse and storage services can make a client's property available for pick-up on short notice or distribute products on behalf of customers. The proper storage and tracking of inventory ensure that delivery times are met and asset management costs are reduced. The market is segmented by type (general warehousing and storage, refrigerated warehousing and storage, and farm product warehousing and storage), ownership (private warehouses, public warehouses, and bonded warehouses), end-user industry (manufacturing, consumer goods, food and beverage, retail, and healthcare), and geography (North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, and Middle-East and Africa). The report offers the market sizes and forecasts in value for all the above segments.
Key Market Trends
The Refrigerated Warehousing and Storage Segment is Expected to Grow Significantly
Refrigerated warehousing and storage are significantly showing positive trends toward market growth, mostly in the pharma sector. Moreover, the Care Quality Commission recommends that insulins, antibiotic liquids, injections, eye drops, and some creams must be stored between 2ºC and 8ºC to maintain the effectiveness of the medicines. According to the US Census Bureau, 112 .87 million Americans used eye drops and eyewash in 2019. This figure is projected to increase to 118 .49 million in 2023. Therefore, the increasing demand would have a positive impact on the refrigerated warehousing and storage market globally.
Further, seeing the demand for refrigerated warehousing and storage, companies are entering this segment to gain a competitive advantage and expand their geographic presence. For instance, in October 2019, United Parcel Service Inc. announced that it was expanding its capacity to handle its recent healthcare investment. The expansion would add 1. 3 million square feet of dedicated healthcare warehouse space and distribution network around the country, which was expected to reach 4 million square feet by 2020. Further, these warehouses would be equipped with climate controls, validated coolers, and freezers to protect high-value specialty pharmaceuticals.
In May 2020, Ahold Delhaize USA announced Americold as its partner to build the two previously announced fully automated frozen warehouses. The new facilities are part of the company’s previously announced supply chain transformation plan as it transitions to a fully integrated, self-distribution model. The plan will expand cold-storage space by 24 million cubic feet or 500,000 square feet by building the two frozen facilities in partnership with Americold. The facilities will be located in Plainville, Conn., which will serve Ahold Delhaize USA’s Northeast brands, and in Mountville, Pa., which will serve Ahold Delhaize USA’s Mid-Atlantic brands.
Further, CBRE research explored the relationship between e-commerce grocery growth and cold storage warehouse capacity in its Food on Demand Series : Cold Storage Logistics Unpacked, suggesting that an additional 75 to 100 million square feet of industrial freezer/cooler space will be needed to meet the demand generated by online grocery sales in the next five years. The COVID -19 pandemic will likely accelerate this need for space, creating long-term impacts on the cold-storage sector. Considering that almost 95% of food imported to or produced in the United States goes through third-party distribution centers before reaching customers, this shift undoubtedly will positively impact the cold storage sector.
