By Liza Helps, Property Editor, Logistics Matters

THE FAMILY-owned company has taken a 10 year lease on Unit 2 which totals 44,899 ft2 the largest single unit on the five uint development. It will relocate its 50 staff from Minworth Industrial Estate in Sutton Coldfield.

Currently under construction by Magrock, AXIS 5, Lichfield South totals 8.8 acres and is set to reach practical completion at the end of September. The development is being delivered to the highest sustainability standards to target BREEAM Excellent and EPC A ratings along with providing solar PV panels, EV charging infrastructure and high-quality landscaped surroundings.

Tropicana Wholesale chief operations officer Debbie Butlin said: “The new facility will significantly increase our warehousing and distribution capacity, allowing us to hold a broader range and greater depth of stock, improving product availability for our customers while supporting increased volumes and future growth.

“The location also gives us excellent access to our customer base and distribution networks across the UK, helping us maintain the high levels of service our customers expect, including same-day dispatch on orders placed by 4pm. The specification of the building also closely aligns with both our operational requirements and sustainability ambitions.”

The additional capacity will also support the rollout of TropAutomate, Tropicana Wholesale’s new automated vending replenishment service for national gym chains and independent gyms. Once connected, TropAutomate uses sales data from individual vending machines to monitor stock against agreed minimum levels and automatically generate daily replenishment orders, removing the need for gym operators to manually monitor and reorder stock.

Tropicana Wholesale chief executive officer Stephen Ford, added: “This move represents a significant investment in the future of Tropicana Wholesale. By combining the additional capacity at Lichfield with our financial strength, we can invest further in stock, giving our customers greater choice and even better product availability.

“TropAutomate is also an important part of our growth plans. We see significant potential to make sports nutrition vending simpler and more efficient for our gym partners, helping them maximise the revenue opportunity without creating an additional administrative burden.”

Units 3, 4 and 5 remain available and can provide space ranging from 13,306 ft2 to 31,416 ft2 and unit 1 is under offer.

Garrison Real Estate acted on behalf of Tungsten Properties and L&G in securing the letting. Garrison Real Estate and JLL are the leasing agents.