Wildberries Expands Sorting Capacity in St. Petersburg as Fire Incident Drags Into Recovery Period

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The Wildberries online store network is headquartered in St. Petersburg and is planning to open a new sorting center in the same city. This development was reported by RIA News, citing market representatives familiar with the company’s expansion plans. The move signals an effort to streamline logistics and improve delivery speeds for customers across Russia and beyond, including markets in Canada and the United States where demand for rapid e commerce fulfillment continues to rise.

Officials indicated that the new sorting facility is expected to begin operations within the next two weeks. The company stated that the center will help alleviate pressure at the existing Utkina Zavod warehouse, allowing more goods to move through the system with less congestion. In a briefing with media partners, representatives noted that the installation of the center will enable more efficient triage of incoming inventory, with items subsequently redistributed to other warehouses and prepared for dispatch to customers or delivery partners. This networked approach aims to reduce transit times and improve order accuracy across multiple regions.

While details on the exact opening date and operating model have not been disclosed, the plan underscores Wildberries’ ongoing commitment to strengthening its logistical backbone in St. Petersburg and surrounding areas. In the wake of a warehouse fire in the Pushkinsky district, officials emphasized the company’s focus on restoring normal operations quickly and maintaining steady supply chains for customers who rely on timely shipments. The company stressed that once goods arrive at the new sorting center, processes will route them to appropriate facilities for fulfillment and last mile delivery, ensuring customers receive orders with minimal delay.

The fire occurred on January 13 in a Wildberries warehouse facility located in St. Petersburg’s Shushari area. The incident involved a substantial area, initially reported around 70,000 square meters, and prompted a coordinated response from the city’s firefighting and emergency services. Approximately 270 personnel from the emergency services were mobilized to manage firefighting efforts and containment operations. Local authorities confirmed that no injuries were reported and that the incident is under investigation to determine a precise cause and scope of the damage, which preliminary assessments put in the range of several billion rubles. This figure references the broader impact on inventory, infrastructure, and the resulting disruption to distribution channels, and it may evolve as more information becomes available. Marked sources from the federal emergency services indicate that the response included rapid containment measures and ongoing assessments of structural safety in the affected area. Customers and partners should expect continued updates as the company works toward stabilizing the network and resuming normal service levels. (source: RIA News)

Analysts note that three plausible factors have been considered as potential causes of the fire at the St. Petersburg facility. Investigations remain in progress, and authorities are coordinating with Wildberries to reconstruct the sequence of events and to assess preventative measures for future incidents. In the meantime, the company is expected to leverage the new sorting capacity as part of a broader strategy to bolster resilience, improve warehouse utilization, and sustain efficient fulfillment across its growing European and North American customer base. (citation: official statements and city updates)

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