The Parksville and District Chamber of Commerce has announced the opening of ‘DELVI’ (Deliver Vancouver Island).
The facility will serve small and medium businesses as their online sales, warehouse and distribution solution. At nearly 20,000 square feet, the location at 1210 Industrial Way will serve as the temporary facility while the new centre is being planned and built for 2023.
The project was developed by Oceanside Initiatives, the economic development function of the chamber and a recipient of a Community Economic Recovery Infrastructure Program grant in the amount of $620K, awarded by the Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development.
“The opening of this temporary fulfillment centre while work continues towards building the permanent centre is a positive step in supporting business owners who’ve had to shift and adapt to our new circumstances and change how they deliver goods as a result of the pandemic,” said Parksville-Qualicum MLA Adam Walker. “Our government invested $620,000 in this micro-fulfillment centre because we understand it will help lower shipping costs for businesses and provide storage and processing space so people can spend less time on administrative processes and more time creating new products and growing their business.”
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The mid-Island centre is a scalable, modular, configurable warehouse and delivery solution for businesses in the Parksville Qualicum Beach region, as well as the rest of Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands. It offers high storage density, immediate pick and pack capabilities, and low-cost same day and next day delivery of goods.
“The chamber sees the huge potential for small- and medium-size businesses on Vancouver Island to grow their businesses,” said PDCC executive director Kim Burden. “It is a perfect fit with the ‘Support Local’ work we have been doing over the past several months. As a chamber of commerce, we want to ensure we serve and support our local businesses.”
“The economic environment has changed rapidly due to the impact that COVID-19 has had on sales and the way consumers purchase goods,” said Corry Hostetter, economic development co-ordinator of Oceanside Initiatives. “There has been an increase in businesses expanding their online sales presence in nearly every community on Vancouver Island. However, many Island businesses do not have the ability to warehouse or fulfill orders in a cost-effective and shipping costs are expensive, which lower profit margins significantly.”
For more information, contact Burden at kim@parksvillechamber.com.
— NEWS Staff, submitted