Catch Group acquires new warehouse in Melbourne

Major e-commerce player Catch Group has announced a new warehouse and chairman as it positions for growth.

Leading online retailer Catch Group is on track to doubling its capacity after securing a new 22,000 sqm warehouse close to its current facilities in Truganina, Melbourne.

In a release, the company says that with additional mezzanine flooring the warehouse brings an additional 27,000sqm to its existing operations that cover 26,000sqm.

The expansion has been made with the goal of providing the capacity needed for the next five years of expected growth, and the new warehouse is expected to be fully operational in January 2019.

The site will be serviced by current employees, with room for additional staff as the site ramps up.

Currently, the company offers around 35,000 SKUs (stock keeping units) from its own stock in the warehouse and it ships more than 10,000 parcels a day at peak times.

The warehouse will also feature the innovative KNAPP multi-shuttle robotic system, an automated storage system that plays a central role in an intralogistics system, efficiently storing a large proportion of stock in minimal space.

The 84-shuttle, state-of-the-art system, will provide Catch with much greater capacity and throughput to continue fulfilling customer orders within best practice delivery times.

Catch Group CEO Nati Harpaz says the new property is a "direct result" of increasing demand for the company's services with a highly engaged customer base.

"Catch Group has been experiencing significant growth over the last two years, as we continue to expand our product offering and grow our Marketplace," Harpaz says.

"Furthermore, the new warehouse will allow us to continue to expand the range of products we offer through In-stock and widen several categories such as pantry and fast-moving consumer goods.

"The Catch customer expects us to tick all the boxes great prices, well known brands as well as fast delivery and with this warehouse we will continue to meet our customer needs for the next few years."

New chairman

The deal coincides with the announcement of a new chairman for Catch Group - Gary Levin, who is also a non-executive director at Baby Bunting (ASX: BBN).

He will also be joined on the board by independent non-executive directors Susan Forrester and Evonne Collier.

"I'm excited to welcome this group of incredibly talented individuals to the Board of Catch Group. Each individual brings with them a suite of skills that will be vital to the business and its 1.2 million active customer base," says Harpaz.

"I look forward to working closely with Gary as we utilise Catch's highly scalable operating platform to grow our presence in the A$18bn Australian online retail market."

Levin highlights Catch Group's established position in the market,offering a "distinctive" customervalue proposition that differentiates it from its peers.

"The team at Catch Group has done a sensational job in building one of the leading online retail players in the market, in part due to its entrepreneurial and experienced management team," says the new chairman.

"Susan and Evonne bring with them a wealth of experience advising both public and private companies, helping them scale up and grow efficiently and effectively. Between them they have over 50 years' operational and managerial experience which will be invaluable to the Group as we continue to look towards our next phase of growth."

Business News Australia