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An ever-increasing number of companies outsource logistics activities to third-party logistics (3PL) providers to beat the competition. From the buyer's (shippers') perspective, selecting the right 3PL provider is crucial, and from the 3PL provider's perspective, it is imperative to be attractive and to retain clients. To this aim, a potential lever can be physical assets, such as warehouses, which the literature has traditionally neglected. The objective is to benchmark the importance of warehouses for 3PL providers to attract/retain clients and for shippers to select the right 3PL provider.

The authors performed an empirical investigation through interviews on dyads (3PL providers/shippers) and utilized the Best-Worst Method (BWM) to rank the criteria used in the 3PL buying process and allow the warehouse's role to emerge.

Results show that the 3PL buying process consists of four phases and three evaluation steps. The selection criteria are classified into three groups: order qualifiers, order winners and retention factors. The warehouse has different levels of importance throughout the process. It appears that it can indirectly enhance the attractiveness and retention capability of 3PL providers through other selection criteria.

By combining the resource-based view and the customer value theory, this research extends the theory on logistics outsourcing by studying the phases of the 3PL buying process and scrutinizing the criteria used in different evaluation steps. The research adds a double perspective of analysis (3PL providers and shippers), which is missing in the literature, and focuses on the importance of warehouses.

Logistics real estate has been experiencing a recent rebirth led by the growth of retailing and e-commerce. Although these sectors are looking for facilities matching their logistics needs, the identification of the most suitable building becomes a challenging task. To date, from both the practitioner’s and academic perspectives there is a lack of models for assessing the quality of logistics facilities together with functionality (i.e. whether a warehouse is suitable for hosting a given logistics activity). The purpose of this paper is to fill this gap by developing a rating model for assessing the quality and functionality of logistics facilities.

A three-pronged methodology was adopted. First, a Systematic Literature Network Analysis (SLNA) was carried out to identify the relevant features that must be taken into consideration when assessing logistics real estate. Second, a Delphi method involving experts in the field was used to fine-tune the list of features that emerged from the SLNA process and to evaluate the importance of each feature from a company perspective. The rating model was developed and validated through pilot tests on 27 logistics facilities.

The rating model is divided into four sections: location, technical specifications, external spaces and internal areas. As an output, the model determines the building quality and main functionality, together with a gap analysis to detect the weakest emerging elements.

This research fills an identified research gap in the logistics real estate literature. Specifically, it offers a quantitative and shared evaluation method, which can be used to estimate building quality and functionality, thus extending the scope of the previous assessment methods available.