- Sustainability of industrial buildings will become increasingly important.
- The development is expected to be carbon neutral upon practical completion.
- Most industrial stock is unrated.
L’Oreal Australia and New Zealand has committed to a seven year lease at Goodman Redbank Motorway Estate in Queensland for a purpose-built 14,533 sqm distribution facility in Brisbane.
The warehouse layout will be optimised to streamline future business and operations and support its Melbourne distribution centre in getting products to customers on the east coast more efficiently.
“Establishing a new distribution centre in Brisbane represents a significant milestone in our growth strategy; this expansion will enable us to better serve our customers by reducing delivery times and ensuring products are available when and where they are needed,” said L’Oreal ANZ CEO Rodrigo Pizarro.
L’Oreal ANZ joined forces with supply chain consultant and long term partner, TMX Global, to undertake a comprehensive expression of interest and tender program, identifying existing building opportunities as well as permit-approved sites and speculative facilities that could meet its requirements.
A key challenge was ensuring the site was operational by early 2024. The result was procuring a premium grade distribution centre with Goodman, which aligned with L’Oreal ANZ’s plans for future growth alongside its corporate and sustainability requirements.
“L’Oreal is a welcome addition to our Australian customer base, extending our relationship with the global brand outside Hong Kong for the first time,” said Goodman Group CEO, Jason Little.
“The new facility at Goodman’s Redbank Motorway Estate will allow L’Oreal to be close to large consumer populations, which helps them meet rising delivery and service expectations.
“It also provides greater resilience for the supply chain and opportunities to be more sustainable.”
Targeting sustainability
The L’Oreal development at Goodman Redbank Motorway Estate is targeting a 4 Star Green Star Buildings rating with sustainability features, including a 365kW solar array system, which will generate the equivalent energy of powering 100 Queensland homes, and electric vehicle charging points.
Moreover, the development is expected to be carbon neutral upon completion.
JLL head of strategic research, Annabel McFarlane, said a 4 Star Green Star is well above the market average, given most industrial stock is unrated.
“L’Oreal is like many other retailer industrial occupier groups, in that they are focused on a millennial consumer base for growth, sustainability becomes a really important element to incorporate into their strategies given the heightened climate change awareness of this demographic,” she said.
“The sustainability credentials of industrial buildings will become increasingly important as more corporates and retailers announce net zero carbon target dates and focus on addressing the sustainability of their supply chains.”
Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA) chief impact officer, Jorge Chapa, said the benefits of investing now in a Green Star Buildings rating is second to none.
“Climate action, resource efficiency and wellbeing are key to meeting a changing world with resilience,” he said.
“It’s imperative that the built environment responds to the challenges, and leasing a building with a 4 Star Green Star certification, as L’Oreal has set out to do, is a huge step in the right direction.”
