Assess proximity to highways, rail interchanges, and air cargo hubs; bonded vs. non‑bonded space; racking and cold‑chain capacity; dedicated cross‑dock and transload zones; local carrier density for regional LTL and parcel lanes; and confirmed WMS/EDI integration for real‑time visibility and exception management.

Build a TCO model including storage per pallet/month, pick‑and‑pack cost per order, inbound receiving and putaway, returns handling, transportation savings from reduced miles, inventory holding days, and technology/onboarding fees; stress‑test model under peak season volumes to capture scale economics.

Require inventory accuracy targets, on‑time order fill and ship window SLAs, damage and returns rates, cycle count procedures, sample KPIs for throughput and lead times, system integration templates (API/EDI), contingency plans for labor or transport disruptions, and clear fee schedules for scale‑up scenarios.