Dive Brief:
- Tractor Supply broke ground Tuesday on its newest distribution center, which is slated to open in late 2026 or early 2027, according to a company press release.
- When completed, the company’s eleventh distribution center will comprise 865,000 square feet, making it the fourth largest in the company’s chain. It is located in Nampa, Idaho, near several Tractor Supply stores in Middleton, Kuna and Emmett.
- The distribution center will serve about 200 of the chain’s stores in the Pacific Northwest, including locations in Washington, Oregon, California, Idaho, Nevada, Utah, Montana and Wyoming.
Dive Insight:
Tractor Supply looked at nearby states before settling on opening its latest distribution center in Nampa, where it is investing $225 million in a facility that will be built to LEED certification standards.
“The Nampa facility will drastically reduce the distance between the distribution center and our stores in the Pacific Northwest, which will enable us to serve these stores more efficiently,” Colin Yankee, chief supply chain officer of Tractor Supply, said in a statement. “Additionally, this distribution center will position us well for expansion into new markets in the Pacific Northwest. We looked across five states and decided Nampa was the best choice based on its location, the site was already zoned properly, and the site was large enough for our facility.”
During this year’s first quarter, the retailer opened 15 Tractor Supply stores. The company now operates 2,311 Tractor Supply locations and 206 Petsense by Tractor Supply stores.
Tractor Supply on Thursday reported first-quarter earnings results. Net sales increased 2.1% to $3.5 billion year over year, driven by new store openings and the contribution from online pet pharmacy Allivet, which Tractor Supply acquired last year. The company this month launched Tractor Supply Rx, which integrates its digital pharmacy business into Tractor Supply and Petsense locations.
Comparable store sales in Q1 decreased 0.9% and net income decreased 9.5% to $179.4 million from $198.2 million in the year-ago quarter.
“As the year unfolds amid increasing volatility, our conviction in Tractor Supply’s resilient and durable business model remains strong,” CEO Hal Lawton said in a statement. “We have a long track record of navigating uncertain environments, and we believe we are well-positioned to do so once again. Tractor Supply is uniquely differentiated by our needs-based product categories, our predominantly U.S.-sourced assortment, deep and trusted vendor relationships and a nimble, scalable supply chain.”
The company updated its outlook for fiscal 2025, with net sales forecast to increase 4% to 8%, compared to its previous guidance of an increase of 5% to 7%. Comparable sales are expected to be flat to up 4%, while net income is expected to land between $1.07 billion and $1.17 billion, compared to a previous estimate of between $1.12 billion and $1.18 billion.
“Since issuing our initial 2025 outlook, there has been a notable increase in uncertainty, in particular the introduction of new tariffs,” Lawton said as reasoning for the change.
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