“California was a good match because a significant amount of our customer base is in southern California,” explained Jerry Fisher, corporate director of distribution and transportation. “But in looking at the total customer base, Reno (Nev.) put us in a more central location. We have to be able to deliver 100 percent of our orders to customers within two days by ground.”

Fort Worth, Texas,-based Alcon is just one of a growing number of companies opening distribution centers in Nevada. Market access is the driving force behind their moves.

Through northern Nevada, Interstate 80 stretches west to San Francisco and east all the way to New York City. Highway 95 heads north to the Canadian border and south to Mexico.

“It’s a great place to service California without being in California,” said Jerry Ingrao, director and general manager of Brightpoint Inc. “California is pretty expensive — labor, real estate, regulations — so northern Nevada is as close as you need to be for next day service to your customers in the West.”

In September, the Indiana-based distributor of telecommunication devices began shipping cellular phones and accessories from its new 160,000-square-foot facility in Reno. 

“Nevada is more than gaming and mining,” said Ingrao. “A lot of major distribution companies are relocating to the state. By others coming in, it will make (Nevada) a stronger distribution marketplace. They will continue to improve the airports and trucking routes to support the volume.”

Shipping opportunity also attracted the top Internet book retailer to Reno. In January, Amazon.com leased a 323,000 square foot warehouse in Fernley. In September, the Seattle-based distributor of books, videos and compact discs completed an expansion that more than doubled its space to 728,000 square feet.

“Its proximity to our West Coast customers has enabled us to reduce standard shipping times to key markets in the Western United States,” said Emily Glassman, company spokesperson.

For companies that rely on airfreight, Nevada’s network of five commercial airports and more than two dozen paved general aviation airports holds appeal.

“We have an airport nearby, and the shipping carriers have late cutoffs,” said Alcon’s Fisher. “Since we’re on Pacific Time, that gives us a longer business day to get some of our packages out. It would have been an impediment if we didn’t have that extra time.”

Ready for business

In anticipation of companies looking to begin operations quickly, many developers have prepared spec buildings or pads ready for build-to-suit facilities.

“One thing that helped us move toward our decision was that there was quite a bit of building inventory in process in Nevada — buildings in various stages of development,” said Fisher. “We decided halfway through the search that an existing building would not fit our needs. 

“For example, we had special requirements like a 30-foot clear height building with a very flat floor. We also needed a temperature-controlled building, and adding air conditioning to an old facility would be costly.

“We started looking at developers and sites to see how fast they would get commitments and permits. We found that Reno was very proactive in getting it done.”