Retailer Abt Electronics plans to double the size of its Glenview warehouse to more than 800,000 square feet as sales rise and it needs more space to stash large appliances.
The project — on land Abt purchased — would add about 430,000 square feet to the existing facility at 1200 N. Milwaukee Avenue, according to a news release the retailer sent. The Chicago Tribune first reported on the plan.
The space would include about 22,000 square feet of offices at what is the headquarters of the 85-year-old, family-run company.
Abt said it has tried to stock up on popular, large items such as TVs and refrigerators during the pandemic to avoid supply chain problems, the Tribune reported. In-store sales jumped over 30 percent in the past year, the report noted.
McShane Construction Company has already begun working on the expansion, which is expected to be completed by October. It comes just five years after Abt added 100,000 square feet to the warehouse. That project was supposed to provide sufficient capacity for 20 years. In 2018, the company built a 100,000-square-foot showroom, according to the Tribune, and it leased warehouse space in Lake County it will now exit.
The Chicago area industrial market, a strong performer for years, took off during the pandemic. Amazon, Walmart https://therealdeal.com/chicago/2021/04/15/walmart-leases-1m-sf-warehouse/ and other large retailers have been leasing and acquiring millions of square feet, and firms such as Prologis and ML Realty have looked to buy out housing communities to develop new warehouses.
[Tribune] — Alexi Friedman