LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – More holiday orders than ever are being shipped from distribution and fulfillment centers across Nevada, as numerous retailers and companies continue to move to the Silver State, set up large warehouse facilities and meet the growing demand for online shopping.
The Governor’s Office of Economic Development said the pandemic shifted consumer behavior to a surge in online shopping, and as the trend continued, it exposed a crucial need to meet the “upstream and downstream supply chain” across the Pacific Rim: more fulfillment centers were urgently needed to take in products from abroad, then service the West Coast and beyond.
According to real estate firm Colliers, from 2019 to 2023, the Las Vegas Valley alone added 25.2 million square feet of industrial space for warehouse and distribution purposes, leading to a current total of 93.1 million square feet. A report from Colliers shows dozens of companies in the sector currently have facilities under construction. Despite a slump in the commercial real estate market from rising interest rates, these types of companies continued throughout late 2023 to acquire and move into hundreds of thousands of square feet of industrial space.
GOED tells FOX5, from 2019 to 2023, the state has added 19,400 jobs in this employment sector alone, totaling 97,700 people employed across Nevada.
Since 2012, GOED officials have helped 161 businesses in the “Logistics and Operations” sector move to Nevada, bringing more than 20,000 jobs. Officials note that plenty of other companies have rapidly relocated to the Silver State and established themselves without asking for any state incentives.
“Las Vegas presents some unique benefits. One, it is very close to the Port of Long Beach, and a lot of goods that are sold in the country come in through the Port of Long Beach. We’re roughly 90 miles from the California border. Real estate here is much cheaper than it is in Southern California. ,” said Brandon Stewart, founder and CEO of fulfillment company Swoop. The company provides storage and fulfillment for numerous items like health and beauty brands, currently on shelves in major retailers like Walmart and Target.
Swoop ships 175,000 packages a month; 15% of orders end up somewhere in the Las Vegas Valley.
Black Friday and Cyber Monday led to a 35% to 40% spike in orders for the company’s retailers.
“People in Nevada especially in the Las Vegas Valley, are shopping just like everyone else around the country online. This is where their stuff is coming from,” Stewart said. The company hopes to move into an even bigger facility in 12 to 18 months.
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