San Francisco — Gap Inc. plans to open a new state-of-the-art Customer Experience Center in Longview, Texas. By delivering inventory faster and more efficiently to customers across the country, the $140 million investment will help Gap Inc. meet the rising customer demand for online shopping and reach its future plans for digital growth.
Gap Inc. anticipates the new campus will create more than 500 full-time jobs in Longview by the end of 2023 and will grow to more than 1,000 full-time jobs in the city over the next 5 years. Additionally, the company expects to create more than 1,000 part-time and seasonal jobs by 2026.
The new campus will become Gap Inc.’s latest facility to feature industry-leading technology that has been tested and optimized in other campuses across the Gap Inc. network. Upon completion, the new facility will be able to process up to 1 million units per day.
“As we look to deliver on our 3-year strategy and double our online business, we needed to expand our fulfillment network to provide a great experience for our customers today and ensure we have the ability to grow in the future,” says Shawn Curran, chief operating officer, Gap Inc.
Prior to the pandemic, Gap Inc. set out on a journey to transform its fulfillment network by piloting and implementing some of the world’s most advanced fulfillment technology and robotics. The result has transformed its traditional distribution centers into highly automated, cross-channel Customer Experience Centers, intended to serve customers wherever they are shopping. While the Longview facility will initially serve Old Navy’s growing online business, many of the company’s Customer Experience Centers have the capability to seamlessly serve both online and retail orders in one facility.
The new facility in Longview is expected to total approximately 850,000 square feet. Construction will begin in April 2021 with plans to be fully operational by August 2022. This campus will supplement Gap’s six existing campuses in North America, including those in Fresno, Calif.; Phoenix; Groveport, Ohio; Gallatin, Tenn.; Fishkill, N.Y.; and Brampton, Ontario. While Gap Inc. had plans in place to open a new facility beforehand, as a result of changing customer needs during the pandemic the timeline has been accelerated to create more capacity for online growth.
SOURCE: Gap Inc.