Representatives from Panattoni and Media Expert, the owner of several hundred electronics stores in Poland, together with Hanna Zdanowska, the mayor of Łódź, on Friday - September 2nd - formally opened the latest section of the Media Expert logistics centre within the Central European Logistics Hub. Two buildings with an area of 160,000 sqm, one of which has just been handed over for use and the other to be completed within a year, have been connected to Media Expert’s pre-existing building to create a nationwide distribution complex. Together, the three buildings take up 232,000 sqm and are to provide employment for around 1,000 people. The total area leased by Media Expert from Panattoni across the Łódź region already comes to over 270 000 sqm with a further 35,000 sqm under construction.
Panattoni has been in Łódź since the beginning of its operations. Over the last 17 years it has supplied the city and its region with over 2 mln sqm. The developer has built as much as 270,000 sqm for Media Expert, the owner of over 540 electronics stores across the country, with the two logistics centre buildings within the Central European hub that were ceremoniously opened accounting for 160,000 sqm of this space. The buildings have been connected via a conveyor belt so that goods can be automatically transferred between them. The three buildings take up a total of 270,000 sqm to form a central Media Expert complex for nationwide deliveries. The opening ceremony took place on September 2nd with Marek Dobrzycki, the Managing Director of Panattoni, Andrzej Błachowicz, the vice-president of TERG S.A. - the company that owns Media Expert - and Hanna Zdanowska, the Mayor of Łódź taking part.
Marek Dobrzycki, Managing Director of Panattoni commented on the development that: “In the end, the opening of another logistics centre built by us for Media Expert is very important for a number of reasons. Firstly it cements our many-year relationship with a client for whom we have already developed over 270,000 sqm. Secondly, we once again see the massive support of the local authorities. The city’s leaders have been with us since the beginning of our operations in Łódź and their pro-business approach has been the driving force behind our operations in the region. Thirdly, it confirms the huge potential of the Central European Logistics Hub for large companies operating throughout the country. The delivery of almost 600,000 sqm of space means that the concept of a new business district in Łódź has hit the bullseye.”
“Today, we are formally handing over a modern automated Media Expert Logistics Park for use. Thanks to this we will be able to meet the demands of the market and supply our customers in the Retail and Omnichannel distribution channels even more quickly and more effectively. Our relationship with Łódź began a decade ago and we are still investing here and creating new jobs because we appreciate the good climate for development here. It is in Łódź that we are investing in our latest development with our long-term partner Panattoni. The quality, punctuality and professionalism are very important to us, and Panattoni guarantees them, which is why they are the best binders of our brands and assure our fruitful partnership in the future,” says Marek Grzebita, CEO TERG S.A., the owner of Media Expert brand.
"Four years from the time when we announced together with Panattoni the construction of the largest production and distribution centre in Poland, we can communicate that it has in essence already been completed. It is simply unimaginable that we have managed in such a short time to build an industrial district from scratch that bustles with life, provides new jobs and without doubt drives on the development of the city. Thank you Panattoni for the trust that you have placed in Łódź. Your development will provide the infrastructure that makes it possible for companies to grow in Łódź. I also want to sincerely thank Media Expert, who took the decision that it would be Łódź where their central logistics and nationwide distribution centre would arise. I assure you we will make every effort so that you feel at home here in Łódź,” says Hanna Zdanowska, the Mayor of Łódź.
The location in the centre of the country allows for logistics to be optimised and for delivery times to be cut for individual clients as well as for e-commerce and omnichannel sales and for brick and mortar stores. The Central European Logistics Hub is on the city limits of Łódź and has good access to the city’s public transport system. This is particularly important for Media Expert, which will employ 1,000 people in its three buildings within the Hub. Nearby the complex is a railway station and working with the city, a new dedicated bus line is to be opened. The complex is well suited for use as a central warehousing facility due to it being located almost exactly in the centre of Poland. The development is on ul. Jędrzejowskiej in Łódź just next to the A1, the only Polish motorway that runs from north to south. The Hub is barely 30 km from the Łódź Północ junction where the A1 and A2 motorways cross.
Eventually the Central European Logistics Hub will have an area of over 720,000 sqm. Companies that have already located their production or logistics centres here include BSH Sprzęt Gospodarstwa Domowego and SMYK. The Hub is driving the development of the New Industrial District of Łódź, which is to provide 7,000 jobs in total.
