United Kingdom Warehousing and Distribution Logistics Market Size

UK Warehousing & Distribution Logistics Market Analysis

During the time frame of the forecast, the UK warehouse and distribution logistics market is expected to register a CAGR of more than 5%.

• COVID-19 pretty much brought the global flow of goods to a virtual standstill. Industries of all descriptions found it difficult to procure goods. Strict enforcement of border controls led to backups and delays. COVID-19 caused business revenues to plummet, and the market took a hit.
• Over the last decade, the number of logistics facilities in the UK has doubled. This prolific growth is perhaps best characterized in the Midlands, the region with the most concentrated number of logistics and warehouse providers in the UK. Additionally, parts of the East of England and Yorkshire and Humberside, regions not traditionally considered to be major logistics hubs, are now major sectoral logistics powerhouses.
• Britain's decision to leave the EU and the COVID-19 pandemic forced businesses in a wide range of industries to change how they do business. This led to the need for more warehouse space. In the Midlands, for example, 90% of the British population lives within a four-hour drive, which made it easy for businesses to store and ship goods anywhere in the UK quickly and efficiently. This made supply chains more efficient. In 2021, the number of transport and storage businesses was 88% higher than in 2011.
• Even though it has grown a lot over the last ten years, transport and storage are still a small industry in the UK. According to the Office of National Statistics (ONS), in 2011, there were approximately 17,000 postal and courier depots in the UK. By 2021, this number had grown by 147%, to 42,500. A big part of this growth came from the West Midlands.Couriers and haulers have been the main drivers of transport and storage growth over the past ten years. Also, after Britain left the EU, 69% of businesses in the transportation and storage industries said they used a wider range of suppliers.
• Because there are so many different kinds of distribution services and commercial transportation options are always changing, businesses need more cost-effective, flexible, and custom ways to handle logistics and warehouse storage. Also, this trend seems likely to keep going in the years to come, since eCommerce is still growing and some local businesses are closing down as people continue to look for better deals online than in person.
• The UK has high labor costs and a high rate of e-commerce. For example, per warehouse, the UK spends much more than the average country in the world. This makes it a prime market for warehouse automation. UK consumers have been buying things online for a long time and expect extremely fast (and free) delivery-something that requires levels of efficiency that can only be achieved with automation. Therefore, the UK has been faster to adopt e-commerce than other comparable European nations.
• But the figures are stark: in France, the e-commerce spend per warehouse was USD 20.2 million in 2021; in Italy, it was USD 8.8 million; and the UK has the world's highest at USD 36 million. When it comes to the overall size of the warehouse automation market, Germany and the UK will lead Europe in 2020. According to industry estimates, the UK will have Europe's largest warehouse automation market at USD 3.9 billion by 2025, at which point its market will be USD 900 million larger than Germany's.