With 47 stores across sixteen regions, Metro is now one of the leading players in Italy’s professional cash and carry sector, catering primarily to retailers and the Horeca industry. Its business model is built on three integrated sales channels: traditional cash and carry; Food Service Distribution, which allows purchases through sales consultants or via an online platform with direct delivery to businesses; and online-only sales.
To support this strategy, logistics has become a central pillar. Following the hubs in San Vito al Tagliamento and Pieve Emanuele, Metro has inaugurated in Pontedera its third facility dedicated to Food Service Distribution. Operational from May 2025, the site is designed to ensure comprehensive coverage of Tuscany, with the aim of doubling sales in the region. The choice of Pontedera is far from accidental: located along the Florence-Pisa-Livorno axis and close to both the port and the freight village of Livorno, the city offers a strategic position in an area that is gradually shifting its industrial focus towards logistics.
The new warehouse, covering 9,000 square metres, was delivered in record time by Logistics Capital Partners, with construction carried out by Pgm on a design by Icm. Inside, it features technological and operational solutions tailored to the needs of a diverse clientele. The refrigerated area spans 4,800 square metres, including 700 dedicated to frozen products. Dedicated departments serve meat, fish and fruit and vegetables, alongside two specialist laboratories. The fish section, equipped with tanks for live crustaceans, guarantees delivery within a few hours of receiving goods, while the meat laboratory is fitted with advanced ageing rooms capable of handling up to 200 tonnes per year, including premium products such as Kobe and Wagyu beef.
Alongside fresh produce, a large ambient-temperature area accommodates up to 4,000 pallets with around 3,200 product lines, ranging from canned goods to alcoholic beverages. For higher-value items, an automated vertical cabinet has been installed to optimise space and reduce picking errors. The facility is completed by a 2,900 square metre loading and unloading zone with twenty-two operational bays. At present, deliveries are carried out by forty vehicles, a fleet set to expand to sixty, with orders promised within 24 hours and same-day service available in neighbouring areas. The building is Breeam Excellent certified and equipped with a 400 kWp self-consumption photovoltaic system.
