As problems with the supply chain and logistics continue to plague the market, more companies are turning to Riverside-based WarehouseQuote for answers.
WarehouseQuote, a division of Northpoint Development, partners with third-party logistics (3PL) providers throughout North America and uses technology to help clients establish the most efficient warehousing and distribution network possible. It’s become a highly desired offering, as companies in need of distribution services face unpredictable demand surges, slow turnaround times and increasing costs.
Established in 2020 with four employees, WarehouseQuote grew to 40 employees in 2021 and already has surpassed 50 in 2022. Employment growth has been particularly strong for the technology and operations teams.
“Where there are stresses and where there are issues from a supply chain perspective, there are opportunities for us,” Chief Marketing Officer Jordan Brunk said. “We've seen a flood of folks who need help across the U.S. and North America. Quoting is a part of the process. But we're moving more towards being a true design firm. It’s about having a focus on understanding our customers, understanding their customers’ purchasing behavior and understanding where their warehouses should be to save on transportation costs and fulfill orders quicker. We're helping our customers really build the best solution, instead of just saying the pricing is ‘X’ in whatever market.”
WarehouseQuote doesn’t own warehouses or logistics companies, but it works with entities that do. That creates the flexibility to add new providers in a particular market or add redundancy wherever necessary.
“Right now, a lot of companies are acquiring or gathering industrial properties and then building a third-party logistics company,” Brunk said. “That takes a lot of time, months and months of infrastructure development, setting up racking systems, hiring staff, etc. If WarehouseQuote needs more redundancy in a market, we go and meet the operators who are already active in those markets, and we acquire some space that way. We hire operators instead of having to build additional buildings on our own.”
WarehouseQuote also has been developing its third-party logistics pricing index, which doesn’t look solely at the costs of leasing or acquiring a building. Instead, it examines the cost of working with a third-party logistics provider.
“We look at how space is being acquired, lease rates and things like that, because we know if lease rates increase for third-party logistics operators, their pricing is going to increase as well,” Brunk said. “That affects our end customers who want to use those companies. We have all that data, and we’re trying to create a baseline. We’re looking at ways to find leading indicators to help us power a forward-looking index and give clients an idea of what the lead time is before it will start impacting the third-party logistics markets.”
