Before dawn on Oct. 23, employees at Best Buy’s new distribution center in Missouri City, Texas, were already loading trucks to deliver products to customers’ homes throughout the day.
But the team paused briefly from its work later in the morning to help company leaders and local officials celebrate the facility’s official grand opening.
The Missouri City delivery distribution center is focused on large items and will help Best Buy meet growing demand for products including big-screen TVs and major appliances. The facility will ship products to stores and deliver to customers’ homes in the Houston area and beyond.
“This building is absolutely critical and a vital milestone within our overall supply chain strategy at Best Buy,” said Tim Buckenberger, Best Buy’s vice president of supply chain.
Missouri City Mayor Allen Owen and Fort Bend County Commissioner Grady Prestage were among the local officials on hand to celebrate the opening.
“This is a great day for us in Missouri City,” Owen said. “Your commitment to this community means a lot to us.”
Prestage said: “On behalf of the 800,000 people who call Fort Bend County home, we want to welcome you all to Ford Bend County.”
Then Best Buy’s leaders cut the blue and yellow ribbons to make the grand opening official.
Serving customers faster
The Missouri City distribution center is 550,000 square feet. It’s filled with tall stacks of 4K TVs, refrigerators, washers and dryers.
The facility will replenish inventory at more than 70 Best Buy stores in Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi, and support customer deliveries. It reduces the burden on the company’s other Texas delivery distribution center, which located 250 miles away in suburban Dallas.
“By opening this facility, we immediately enable the ability to deliver much faster from a home-delivery perspective to our customers, provide a much more reliable experience and improve the overall quality,” Buckenberger said.
The facility has more than 100 employees spread across three shifts.
“This team is an amazing group,” said Daron Ingram, director of operations at the new distribution center. “Starting up a new facility like this is not an easy task. I’d like to give an immense thank you to all of our employees for their hard work and dedication in getting this building up and running.”
Building bikes for kids
As part of the grand opening celebration, employees from the Missouri City distribution center and Best Buy stores across the Houston area built more than 50 bikes for Heart of the Kids Social Services. The local nonprofit places neglected, abandoned and abused children — from newborn to 18 years old — into safe, nurturing homes.
Best Buy also will donate $1,000 to the organization on behalf of the employee volunteers who helped assemble the bikes.
“This is an exciting day for all of us as we open this new distribution center here in Missouri City,” Ingram said. “It marks the beginning of a great relationship with the broader community. We’re looking forward to being your trusted partners, your neighbors and your friends.”