industry news

PETCO to Locate Distribution Center in Braselton
of Atlanta Logistics Innovation Council

- 4/7/2008 -


For Immediate Release
April 7, 2008
Contact: Tanya Dunne
404.586.8471
tdunne@macoc.com


PETCO to Locate Distribution Center in Braselton
Pet products company to add 217 jobs, invest $19 million in facility

ATLANTA— PETCO, a leading pet products company, is locating a new distribution center to Braselton, Ga., representing an investment of $19 million. At full operating capacity, the company anticipates the center will employ up to 217 employees.

PETCO’s new distribution center, which will serve the southeastern United States, will be located in a 506,240-square-foot space at Braselton Business Park in Barrow County.

“We are very pleased to be locating our new facility in Braselton in support of our mission to help pet parents take great care of their pets by providing them with our wide range of products and services,” said Jim Myers, PETCO’s chief executive officer. “Our new distribution center will serve more than 200 PETCO stores across the southern part of the country and will be a great addition to the 15 existing PETCO stores already located throughout Georgia.”

PETCO distribution centers play an integral part in the logistics supply chain process by handling merchandise from the suppliers and moving it to the stores.

PETCO was represented by Clark Dean, senior managing director and Erik Weiss, associate director, Atlanta, and Seth Dudley, executive vice president, Los Angeles, of Studley, an international commercial real estate services firm that specializes in tenant representation.

“Companies continue to select metro Atlanta as the location for their large distribution operations, advancing our reputation as one of the world’s top logistics hubs,” said Bob Pertierra vice president of logistics industry development for the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce. “Atlanta is one of the world’s largest inland ports and a global logistics gateway, our strategic location in the southeast continues to makes us attractive to these types of facilities.”

“Georgia’s strength in logistics makes it a top choice for national retailers like PETCO,” said Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue. “Our unparalleled transportation network and ready workforce are a natural fit for distribution centers.”

Metro Atlanta has the fifth-largest concentration of logistics companies and employment in the country, with more than 103,000 jobs. In fact, more than 90 percent of the top 25 third-party logistics service providers have operations in Atlanta.

PETCO, headquartered in San Diego, Calif., and Studley began working with the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce and other key economic development partners in 2005. Key partners who helped secure the logistics deal included the Georgia Department of Economic Development, and Georgia Power.

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The Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce – with our 4,000 member companies that collectively employ more than 700,000 workers – is a catalyst for a vibrant metro region. For 150 years, the Chamber has been bringing the region’s leaders together to tackle the issues that matter most to the business community: quality jobs and quality of life.


PETCO is a privately held specialty retailer that provides products, services and advice that make it easier for our customers to be great pet parents. We operate more than 850 stores in 49 states and the District of Columbia, as well as a leading pet products and information destination at www.petco.com. Our nonprofit organization, The PETCO Foundation, has raised more than $36 million since its inception in 1999 to help promote and improve the welfare of companion animals. In conjunction with the foundation, we work with and support more than 4,600 local animal welfare groups across the country to help find homes for more than 200,000 adoptable animals every year.
About Studley. Studley is the leading commercial real estate services firm specializing in tenant representation. Founded in 1954, Studley pioneered the conflict-free business model of representing only tenants in their commercial real estate transactions. Today, with 19 offices nationwide and an international presence through its London office and AOS Studley, a partnership with Paris-based AOS, Studley provides strategic real estate solutions to top-tier corporations, not-for-profit organizations and law firms. Information about Studley is available at www.studley.com.