Logistic makes Lombardy more attractive for foreign investors

“Zalando apre un super magazzino in Lombardia” (Zalando opening a giant warehouse in Lombardy): news like this where frequent in the last years. DHL and TNT have been investing in the area next to Malpensa airport, expanding their businesses and showing interest and trust in the Lombardy freight lifts and mobility system.

E-commerce, of course, is driving the process, as merchants consider logistic a main success factor and rapid delivery a differentiation strategy. Alessandro Perego and Riccardo Mangiaracina described here last moves and strategies of these players. Amazon is the right example: the company implemented in Italy the Amazon Prime service (delivering next day) but started from December 2015 to promote PrimeNow (delivering in one hour) in Milan.

The region hosts some of the most important competitors of the logistics industry: in Italy there are more than 25.000 structured companies currently working in the logistics industry, 18.000 of them are located in Lombardy.

The estimated worth of the national logistics industry is € 40 billion (7% of the national GDP) and Lombardy alone accounts for more than € 10 billion, being the first region in terms of companies headquartered (20% of the total), warehousing capacity (32% of the Italian capacity is located in Lombardy).

The development of the mobility network due to Expo2015 (providing better infrastructures around Milan) is boosting the importance of logistic in Lombardy. Currently the system is based on 900 km of trunk roads, 11.000 km of provincial road, 58.000 km of municipal road and 573 km of motorways. Pedemontana motorway will be of great benefit for east-west linkages across the region. Airports (3 international airports in Lombardy) and intermodal terminals (17) are completing the picture.

Milan has a significant role in the industry: 90% of all the logistics areas in Lombardy are located within 45 km from Milan, where the development of such highly specialized areas has been mainly spontaneous and resulted in significant synergies between the operators.

No logistic no business: Lombardy is ready.