The Hut seeks bigger warehouse

FAST growing online retailer The Hut is looking for a new warehouse of between 350,000 – 400,000sq ft.

Chief executive Matthew Moulding told TheBusinessDesk.com that having moved warehouses four times in the last few years, the Northwich-based group is looking for a long-term solution.

Moulding said the new facility would be in the North West and in time could accommodate newly-acquired subsidiary Myprotein.com, which is currently based in Wythenshawe, Manchester.

“We are in a 120,000sq ft warehouse at the moment but need more space. We are looking at a few options, but in the region there are not many of this size available.”

With the workforce at The Hut expected to double to around 1,000 over the next few years, the group may be in need of bigger head office space too.

Employee numbers, boosted by a raft of acquisitions over the last 18 months have risen from 150 to 500, meaning that Meridian House on Gadbrook Park, just outside Northwich, has become fairly congested.

“We are getting a bit tight for space and car parking is a bit of an issue. We do have an option on a new building in new business park near-by, but to be honest it’s a bit grand for us and we still feel like a start-up company, ” Moulding said.

One practical solution could be to move some departments currently at Meridian into offices within the new warehouse, he added.