Follett Invests in New Distribution Center to Meet Rising Customer Demand

OAK BROOK, Ill., Nov. 8, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Follett Higher Education Group, the leading provider of college store and used book services, today announced its investment in a new distribution center in Aurora, Ill. that will enable the company to continue to grow its business and lead the industry.  The 551,200-square-foot structure will increase Follett's processing productivity to make more books available for wholesale and direct-to-consumer orders.

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"This is one of many investments Follett is making to provide even better service to our customers," said Tom Christopher, president of Follett Higher Education Group.  "We are always looking for ways to enhance our service and our new facility will continue to promote our mission of helping our brick-and-mortar and online stores become world-class academic retailers."

Follett will create a single distribution center that will also feature new headquarters for both its wholesale and virtual bookstore businesses to meet the rising demand for the company's products and services.  Follett's current River Grove, Ill. distribution center is processing five million more units per year than the facility's original capacity.

To meet this increasing demand, Follett's Aurora facility will feature industry-leading material handling technology from Kiva Systems, Inc.  The order fulfillment system will use hundreds of mobile robots that will pick up and move inventory pods directly to order pickers.  This "goods-to-person" technology will increase productivity, improve accuracy and enable a level of customer service unprecedented in the industry.

Follett will begin moving its Virtual Bookstore operations this November and will continue the transition of its operations through 2013.  For more information, please visit: www.follettforward.com.

About Follett Higher Education Group

Follett Higher Education Group of Oak Brook, Illinois, is the leading provider of bookstore services and the foremost supplier of used books in North America. Follett services five million students and over 400,000 faculty members through more than 930 stores. Follett also services more than 1,600 independent campus stores with its wholesale services, and has the most visited ecommerce collegiate website, efollett.com, that provides services and products through a network of more than 900 campus stores.

About Follett

Follett Corporation is a $2.7 billion, privately-held company that provides products, services and solutions to the educational marketplace. Follett Corporation was founded in 1873, and today is headquartered in River Grove, Illinois.

SOURCE Follett Higher Education Group