Transportation and Talent Lead the Way in Site Selection

By Brielle Scott, CAE for Market Share Blog | November 4, 2025

At I.CON Central this week, attendees had the opportunity to hear directly from leading end users as they shared how tax incentives, labor availability and energy constraints are shaping their real estate strategies. These in-house decisionmakers offered a candid look at how they select sites, partner with developers and tailor their approach across regions.

Scott J. Ziance, Esq., partner at Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP, led the discussion, which included Marino Colatruglio, vice president, global workplace and corporate real estate, Cardinal Health Inc.; Akiva Freeman, senior asset manager – corporate and supply chain real estate, The Kroger Company; Tim Muckley, vice president of corporate real estate, The Sherwin-Williams Company.

“When you’re making site selection decisions, what are some of the factors you consider?” Ziance asked the group.

“Our supply chain is primarily based on our store locations,” said Freeman, noting that The Kroger Co. has grown through acquisitions. As the company has integrated, they’ve had to evaluate if legacy stores are still in the right location to service their grocery stores.

“Ours is really driven by transportation,” said Colatruglio. It’s important for Cardinal Health to be close to their customers, because they are often executing next-day delivery, he pointed out.

The company recently opened a distribution center in Columbus for the consumer health logistics division. “What that does is allow manufacturers to ship to one location,” Colatruglio explained. The facility breaks down the shipments and sends them to forward distribution centers in full truckloads.

“We do that for pharmaceuticals and consumer health products and medical products, where some of those [products] might be coming from ports overseas,” he said. Being able to consolidate the shipments and put them on full truckloads – “it’s a lot of transportation savings that drives that decision.”

Transportation is also a “huge one” for Sherwin-Williams, Muckley said. Paint is heavy; it takes a lot to get it from one location to the next. With 5,000 retail stores plus distribution to Lowe’s stores, it’s a lot to figure out.

Do state and local incentives or tax policy move the needle for them when looking at sites?

The incentive piece is a key component, but not the driver, Freeman and Colatruglio agreed. Location is the primary, then infrastructure (power and water) and labor. Incentives are more the “cherry on top” as Freeman put it.

Labor availability is a more significant factor for Sherwin-Williams, Muckley said. They’ve struggled with attracting and retaining talent in areas that aren’t near major labor markets.