WASHINGTON: DY Port Logistics Group is a newcomer to Savannah, having entered the market last July. In fact, at only eight years old, the third-party logistics provider — or 3PL — is a relative newcomer to the national market as well. But don’t let that fool you. One of the fastest growing 3PLs in the country, Port Logistics’ move into our area last year completed the company’s “four-corner” strategy of offering complete logistics solutions at all four major U.S. import gateways: New York/New Jersey, LA/Long Beach, Seattle/Tacoma and Savannah.
Initially leasing 100,000 square feet in a warehouse some six miles from the port, the company almost immediately began to run out of space. They are now in the process of moving into their new home — a 315,000-square-foot cross dock in Center Point featuring 200 onsite container slots and 50 dock doors just 4 miles from the ports’ Garden City Terminal.
The full-service operation includes pick, pack and ship as well as assembly, value-added services, eCommerce, retail store replenishment and inventory management. On the transportation side, the company offers gateway drayage, transloading and cross-docking; dedicated store delivery and national transportation.
Tommy Hilfiger Home has already scooped up 130,000 square feet, with Port Logistics currently selling to fill the rest of the building. Estimated employee numbers for 2016 include five to six managers/supervisors; three or four service representatives; and 25-30 warehouse employees. That number will grow as the building fills up, Shawn Carbone, Port Logistics’ local manager, told the Savannah Economic Development Authority board in April.
And, while you may not have heard of Port Logistics Group, you’re no doubt familiar with many of the companies they count as clients — retailers such as Macy’s Inc., Bed Bath & Beyond, Williams-Sonoma, Starbucks and Ross Dress for Less — as well as such manufacturers as Hanes, Nine West, Perry Ellis and SodaStream.
Port Logistics Group brings significant retail, apparel and general merchandise expertise to a gateway location that has taken on increased prominence for retail as market factors, such as congestion in other major ports and the widening of the Panama Canal, make Savannah an increasingly important part of a balanced import strategy, said Port Logistics CEO Bob Stull. The addition of its new Savannah facility gives Port Logistics a total of 12 locations nationwide with more than 5.5 million square feet of warehouse and cross-dock space.
