Daily News
From Home Furnishing Business
Riverside Opens Distribution Center in Virginia, Shortens Delivery Times
January 30,
2020 by Laurie Northington in Business Strategy, Industry 
Ft. Smith, Arkansas-based Riverside Furniture, a leading casegoods resource, has opened a distribution center in Ridgeway, Virginia, positioning the company to better service retailers in the Eastern U.S.
Opened in early December of last year, the company expects that the 75,000-square-foot facility will help Riverside cut shipment lead times to retailers in the Eastern U.S. from a current four weeks to approximately 10 to 14 days from the date of order placement to the retailers’ location. The facility will be fully stocked and operational in February.
“Improved service from the new Virginia warehouse is our latest strategic initiative to deliver added value to our customers,” said Fred Henjes, chief executive officer and president. “The Eastern U.S. retailers serviced by the distribution center will realize higher profitability through reduced freight costs, shorter lead times and higher inventory turns through low shipping minimums.”
“The Virginia facility is Riverside’s second domestic warehouse. The other is based at its headquarters here,” said John Iasiello, senior vice president of strategic planning and business development.
The Fort Smith warehouse will now focus its service on retailers in the Midwest and Western U.S., he said. The company also has a distribution center in Vietnam, from which retailers “can order direct mixed containers, in as small a quantity as 350 cubes, so that independent furniture retailers can take advantage of the lower pricing of direct containers, along with major retailers,” added Iasiello.
The Virginia distribution center is operated by Warren Trucking. Retailers have a choice of receiving immediate shipments if the product is in stock, or sending their preferred carrier to pick up the merchandise within a week.
“We are excited at how the new facility will add a new level of service to our current dealer base and many prospective dealers by offering our best-selling products across all Riverside categories – bedroom, dining, occasional, home office and entertainment,” Iasiello said. “As we ramp up, our goal is a ‘never out of stock’ position on best-sellers.”