To better serve a growing legion of West Coast customers, Tapestry, parent company of brands including Coach and Kate Spade, opened its 788,000-square-foot North Las Vegas Fulfillment Center in November. The facility, which currently employs 200 full- and part-time employees, is expected to require an additional 400 full-time workers by 2029. Tapestry already operates a fulfillment center serving the East Coast located in Jacksonville, Fla.
Designed to distribute 22.2 million units annually and hold 4 million units in inventory for both retail and ecommerce, the North Las Vegas facility will help Tapestry shorten delivery windows from their current five to seven days down to two to three days.
Todd Kahn, CEO and Brand President for Coach at Tapestry, discussed how the new fulfillment center will “equip us to continue stretching what’s possible for our brands, our people and our customers.”
Retail TouchPoints (RTP): Why did Tapestry need another fulfillment center in addition to its existing one in Jacksonville, Fla.?
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Todd Kahn: During the pandemic, we saw tremendous growth in demand from our digital business, which fueled our decision to open a new fulfillment center. Having a facility on the West Coast reduces inbound and outbound transportation, and close proximity to our customers means they’ll receive ecommerce orders that much faster.
RTP: What are the most important technology investments that have been made in the new fulfillment center?
Kahn: The North Las Vegas fulfillment center leverages some of the latest advancements in material handling equipment technology, working to increase the efficiency and storage capacity through automation and interaction with management systems to optimize allocation processes. We’ve brought together cross-functional, brand-new technologies including new warehouse management systems, conveyor control systems and automated storage and retrieval systems. Creating this node is key to putting Tapestry in a position to grow and support not only Coach but all of our brands.
RTP: What efforts have been made to make the new facility sustainable?
Kahn: The new center uses innovative landscaping to minimize water usage, has energy-efficient lighting throughout the facility and features electric vehicle charging stations. And as we begin operations there, we will continue to develop an even more sustainable center, utilizing our close relationship with the local community and our partners to fully understand our impact and where we have opportunity in the coming years to reflect our ongoing commitment to environmental responsibility.
At Tapestry we are dedicated to lasting, sustainable change, consistently analyzing our environmental footprint across emissions, water use and waste, and renewable energy adoption across our operations. We are committed to procuring 100% renewable electricity in our stores, offices and fulfillment centers by 2025.
RTP: The facility has opened at a time when the U.S. labor market is very tight. How will Tapestry ensure the new center will continue to be adequately staffed?
Kahn: As we entered the area, we partnered with the Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation agency (DETR), hosted job fairs in partnership with Goodwill and the Nellis Air Force base, as well as various veterans’ and local community groups, to build awareness of our brand and facility to attract talent.
RTP: What do you see as the biggest growth opportunities for Tapestry and its brands in the U.S.?
Kahn: The biggest growth opportunities include broadening our assortment within growing and durable categories, attracting new younger customers and raising our average unit retail (AUR) through fashion innovation and product excellence. Our brands have been bringing these opportunities to life in different ways: in keeping with consumer trends, Coach has increased its ready-to-wear styles, Kate Spade has seen great momentum in jewelry, and Stuart Weitzman successfully introduced new categories including sneakers, men’s footwear and handbags.
