Tesco Lotus has moved to bolster its operations in southern Thailand, with the retail giant announcing plans to open a distribution centre in Surat Thani.
The company opened it’s first regional distribution centre in Khon Kaen last year, with the new Surat Thani facility to service close to 200 Tesco Lotus stores in 11 provinces within the South East Asian nation’s southern regions.
“The focus of the regional distribution centres has been to get products closer to customers, and improving availability of products on shelves,” Tesco Lotus’ chief executive officer John Christie told Thai newspaper the Nation. “By setting up the DC in Surat Thani, we have also reduced trucks travelling 400,000 kilometres every week, a major reduction in carbon emissions.
The new 52,0002m facility will handle up to 3.5m cases of product, including fresh produce, groceries and non-food items. 'We have invested Bt2.5bn in building this state-of-the-art distribution centre and the project will create nearly 700 new jobs in the local area,” Christie added.
Along with the two regional distribution centres, Tesco-Lotus manages four distribution centres in the Thailand’s central region, along with a hub in Lamphun.
