Evaluate warehouse footprint and slotting flexibility, WMS and API integration, pick-and-pack accuracy, cold-chain capabilities if required, labor scalability, lead times, and carrier contracts. Also review SLA definitions, penalty structures, onboarding timelines, and cost-to-serve modeling to align with order profiles and seasonality.

Closer proximity reduces road miles and fuel costs, shortens lead times, and improves schedule adherence. It enables more efficient LTL consolidation and onward routing, lowers detention and dwell risk, and supports faster cross-border clearance when customs facilities and broker relationships are available near the warehouse.

• Racked storage and adjustable slotting for velocity-based inventory.
• Temperature-controlled zones with monitoring and segregation.
• FIFO inventory flows and traceability for expiry-sensitive products.
• Pick-and-pack, kitting, and returns processing supported by a modern WMS and barcode scanning.

Key metrics include order accuracy, on-time dispatch rate, inventory accuracy, average order cycle time, chargeable minimums, cost-per-pick and cost-per-order, SLA penalties, and scalability provisions. Compare sample P&L modeling for peak vs. off-peak and validate assumptions around labor, slotting fees, and value-added services.