Vitacost.com Opens New West Coast DC

Vitacost.com, an online retailer and direct marketer of health and wellness products based in Boca Raton, FL, opened its new West Coast distribution center in Las Vegas in late April.

The 155,000-sq.-ft. DC replaces the company’s former 63,000-sq.-ft. Las Vegas facility. The new center is equipped with A-frame technology, which enables it to process twice as many orders per hour.

Vitacost.com will be able to go from about 500 orders processed per hour to about 1,000 per hour. The company expects this new technology will eventually allow processing roughly 1,700 orders per hour at peak utilization.

“The implementation of more automated technologies will not only improve our efficiencies over time, but will provide the infrastructure needed to support our continued growth in the years to come,” Vitacost.com CEO Ira Kerker said in a release. He added that the merchant aims to “continue to gain market share by offering the best value, superior customer service and timely and accurate delivery of leading products.”

What’s more, Kerker said that 2010 is a year of investment for the company as “we expand and upgrade our distribution centers, and broaden our product offerings.” Vitacost.com sells dietary supplements such as vitamins, as well as cosmetics, organic personal care products and health foods via its Website and catalogs.