Contact

VARGO® Appoints Gautham Jayaraman as President & COO as Company Drives AI-Driven Waveless Fulfillment

Neal Shah on January 12, 2026

DUBLIN, Ohio (January 13, 2026) — VARGO®, a proven leading systems integrator and pioneer of waveless fulfillment, today announced a strategic leadership transition. Bart Cera will retire from his role as President and CEO. Gautham Jayaraman has been appointed as his successor, assuming the role of President and COO, effective immediately.

 

Known for its innovation in waveless fulfillment, VARGO® championed the expansion of the COFE® (Continuous Order Fulfillment Engine) WES system. This advancement pivoted VARGO® from a conventional material handling provider to a premier automation systems integrator, offering world-class software to orchestrate warehouse operations.

 

“I appreciate Bart for his commitment to VARGO® and our customers over the past 19 years,” said Chairman Mike Vargo. “I am thrilled to pass the torch to Gautham. His technical expertise and collaborative spirit will help drive innovative solutions to our customers.”
Gautham Jayaraman brings an extensive background in operations, consulting, and program delivery across several Fortune 500 companies. Jayaraman is tasked with elevating VARGO®’s foundation through the integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the democratization of fulfillment technology.

 

Jayaraman’s immediate focus will be on accelerating growth across the business. That includes expanding sales, driving innovation, and advancing AI capabilities within the COFE® platform, with a particular emphasis on unlocking new levels of operational performance for VARGO® customers.

 

“This is a remarkable opportunity to lead an organization that is well-prepared for future achievements. I am honored by the trust Mike Vargo and Carlos Ysasi have placed in me to guide the company and to build upon the solid foundation established by founder Julius Vargo in 1971,” said Jayaraman.

 

“The eCommerce, retail, and distribution industries are at an inflection point. Now more than ever, investing in agile technology solutions is critical to building optimized, resilient, and future-ready fulfillment operations. Our commitment is to help our customers achieve the greatest possible return on their investment.

 

At the same time, we must continue investing in our most valuable asset at VARGO® — our associates. Developing our in-house talent is essential, as the pace of change will never slow down. We have strengthened, and will continue to strengthen, our agility and adaptability to drive our next phase of growth and deliver the level of value our customers expect from their partnership with VARGO®.”

VARGO® Addresses Pharma Serialization

GREENCREST on October 22, 2025

DUBLIN, Ohio (October 22, 2025) — VARGO®, a leading provider of automated material handling systems integration, warehouse execution software, and equipment solutions for major fulfillment and distribution centers, continues to pioneer the industry with expert pull-based methodologies and advanced automation technologies.

 

Serialization for a Leading Pharmaceutical Distributor

VARGO® developed a label parsing algorithm for a pharmaceutical distributor to meet the requirements of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA). Under the DSCSA, distributors are required to capture and trace the serial number and other unique identification numbers for each item shipped from distribution facilities. VARGO® engineers created the algorithm to extract the National Drug Code, unique serial number, lot number, and expiration date from manufacturer 2D barcodes. This algorithm was integrated into various Continuous Order Fulfillment Engine (COFE®) processes where item scans occur.

 

The VARGO® team applied its inventory tracking expertise to help a pharmaceutical client comply with DSCSA supply chain standards. Now, the client can monitor key data from manufacturer labels throughout the supply chain. The FDA’s DSCSA requires identifying and tracing products to protect consumers from counterfeit or unsafe medications.

 

COFE® Express Announcement

COFE® is VARGO®’s Continuous Order Fulfillment Engine. It is the first and remains the industry’s most advanced and scalable WES (Warehouse Execution System) for small and large-scale, high-volume fulfillment centers. By sequencing and synchronizing workflows, it organizes and optimizes order fulfillment, ensuring peak efficiency across all resources. VARGO®’s COFE® Express is a scalable version of its flagship platform designed for small- to mid-size businesses with lower order volumes. COFE® Express uses distributed architecture and microservices, so it can be scaled up or down to handle different order volumes. COFE® Express uses on-premise or VARGO® cloud facilities with a message-driven architecture to manage and optimize warehouse workflows. This message-based design facilitates efficient “waveless” processing, which pulls orders in a continuous, efficient flow rather than in large, batch-like “waves.” From picking to shipping, messaging allows for real-time decision-making and ensures continuous flow and efficiency. It is available for brownfield applications, as well as greenfield applications, with pre-integrated hardware automation and necessary material handling equipment (MHE). Watch this video to learn more about COFE®.

 

Geek+ Partnership

VARGO® recently partnered with Geekplus, a leader in scalable automation solutions, to bring the innovative robotics solutions of Geekplus to VARGO® customers across multiple industries. Renowned for its highly flexible and reliable automation technology, Geekplus solutions are trusted by some of the world’s largest brands, including UPS, Walmart, and Adidas. Together with the VARGO® approach to waveless and continuous order processing, Geekplus goods-to-person and mobile sortation systems offer a unique order fulfillment solution for VARGO® customers. With multiple projects at various stages of planning, concepting, and designing, both industry leaders look forward to showcasing how their joint solutions will add flexibility and increased capacity across the health and beauty, food and beverage, sporting goods, and high-fashion retail industries.

 

Retailers Roundtable

VARGO® hosted the first annual Retailers Roundtable in Columbus, Ohio on September 16 and 17. The VARGO® team created the invite-only event for retailers and third-party logistics providers to spark high-level insights and foster ongoing empowerment of the fulfillment industry. Keynote speakers and panelists included Tom Andersson, Co-Founder of STIQ, Ltd and Christian Dow, EVP of MHI. Attendees toured a Gap Inc. facility and attended an industry insights presentation by Kevin Kuntz, SVP of Global Logistics, Gap Inc. VARGO® plans to host the event annually.

 

“In today’s rapidly evolving fulfillment landscape, no single solution can solve every challenge broadly for everyone,” said Bart Cera, President and CEO of VARGO®. “Real progress happens when industry leaders connect, collaborate, and share their strengths and Systems Integrators like VARGO® listen and shape conversations using their expertise to unlock smarter solutions, faster innovation, and a stronger supply chain for everyone.”

 

About VARGO®

VARGO® is a proven integrator to enable what’s possible by empowering automation and people. VARGO® combines the newest and smartest automation technologies with the intelligent design of COFE® (Continuous Order Fulfillment Engine), the first intelligent WES (Warehouse Execution System) to orchestrate game-changing fulfillment solutions across all work resources: people, processes, and automation technologies. The VARGO® team of mechanical and software engineers has more than five decades of experience and has helped manufacturers, distributors, leading retailers, e-commerce providers, and 3PLs improve their fulfillment and material handling systems, increase processing capacities, and reduce order cycle times.

Learn more about VARGO® at vargosolutions.com.

VARGO® and Geek+ Partner to Create Game-Changing e-Commerce Automation Solutions

GREENCREST on September 18, 2025

Industry Leaders Join Forces to Increase Flexibility and Efficiency

DUBLIN, Ohio (September 2, 2025) — VARGO®, a leading provider of automated material handling systems integration, warehouse execution software, and equipment solutions for major fulfillment and distribution centers, announced their partnership with Geekplus, a leader in scalable automation solutions. This partnership between two trusted industry leaders brings the innovative robotics solutions of Geekplus to VARGO® customers across multiple industries, facilitated by VARGO®’s highly customized approach and industry leading COFE® Warehouse Execution System (WES).

Well known for its highly flexible and reliable automation technology, Geekplus solutions are trusted by some the world’s largest brands, including UPS, Walmart and Adidas. Together with the VARGO® approach to waveless and continuous order processing, Geekplus goods-to-person and mobile sortation systems offer a unique order fulfillment solution to VARGO® customers. With multiple projects at various stages of planning and deployment, the pair of industry leaders look forward to showcasing how their joint solutions will add flexibility and increased capacity across numerous industries including health and beauty, food and beverage, sporting goods and high-fashion retail.

“Our approach to automation integration requires a great deal of collaboration with our vendor partners to orchestrate workflows across the entire system,” said Robert Nilsson, Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) at VARGO®. “We know that expectations for maximum efficiency continue to evolve for our e-Commerce customers and we do not shy away from the challenge. Geekplus shares our focus on scalable solutions that optimize labor. By coordinating work activities and implementing the right solutions, our COFE® WES assigns work to the best-fit automation, improving order accuracy and speed and ultimately, customers satisfaction.”

“What sets VARGO apart is their ability to make software changes quickly and efficiently, without having to go back to a third party and wait months for updates.” said Gene Sanders, Head of Channel Management, Geekplus America. “Their world-class WES solution paired with our flexible automation gives current and future customers the reliability and responsiveness our customers need. This partnership is a game-changer for delivering robust, agile automation across industries.”

VARGO® and OPEX® Take Gap Inc. to Highest Peak in Company History

GREENCREST on July 1, 2025

DUBLIN, Ohio (July 1, 2025) — VARGO® a leading automation systems integrator and provider of warehouse execution software for distribution centers, is pleased to announce the successful completion of a collaborative project with its technology partner OPEX® for Gap Inc. Gap, a longstanding client of VARGO®, leveraged COFE® and VARGO®‘s successful experience supplying and integrating intelligent automation. With the implementation of one Sure Sort®, VARGO® was able to boost picking productivity by over 10% and automate the work of five manual put-to-order work stations.

In 2025, VARGO® integrated OPEX® Sure Sort® in one of Gap Inc.’s Gallatin, Tennessee distribution centers. VARGO®‘s continuous flow WES optimizes efficiency by maintaining a steady stream of products to the OPEX® Sure Sort® to maximize the return on automation investments. Not only does it increase efficiency of the operation, but it is also one of the top performing machines in the OPEX® Sure Sort® network of more than 900 systems.

“E-commerce growth brings challenges that must be addressed proactively,” said Robert Nilsson, Chief Commercial Officer at VARGO®. “Retailers struggle to meet consumer expectations due to package delivery issues, automation limitations, space constraints and labor concerns. Partnering with OPEX® helps us introduce technologies to manage current and future e-commerce volumes while improving productivity and optimizing labor.”

By incorporating OPEX® Sure Sort® technology into COFE® WES, VARGO® has significantly enhanced its capabilities and feeds automated packaging processes downstream. Gap continues to achieve outstanding building throughput and order fulfillment speed due to VARGO®‘s integrated solutions powered by COFE®.

“Partnering with experienced integrators like VARGO® enables us to deliver scalable, high-impact automation solutions,” said Alex Stevens, President, Warehouse Automation at OPEX®. “By combining our Sure Sort® technology with VARGO®’s WES expertise, we help clients like Gap Inc. boost efficiency and meet the demands of modern retail.”

VARGO® Announces Strategic Partnership with Sitma

GREENCREST on May 14, 2025

DUBLIN, Ohio (May 14, 2025) — VARGO®, a leading provider of automated material handling systems integration, warehouse execution software and equipment solutions for major fulfillment and distribution centers, announces a new partnership with Sitma. These two pioneers and leaders in warehouse execution software and mailer automation technology are partnering for end-of-line packaging automation that improves the overall facility throughput, reduces direct labor in a reduced building footprint, and promotes sustainability via right-to-size paper-based mailer packages for customers.

This partnership is combining VARGO®’s capabilities through its’ COFE® Put-Wall Speedpack® stations with Sitma’s high speed automated packaging capabilities. In real-time COFE® Put-Wall Speedpack® stations facilitate order consolidation dynamically for single and multiple orders. Those orders are then completed via an automated workflow delivered into Sitma’s Fast Pack Plus fully automated mailer automation system. This creates a continued and sustainable throughput process for all orders, end-to-end, from order creation and release to shipping.

“As fully automated and on-demand packaging becomes more essential for our customers, our partnership with Sitma will help us to continue to support them in addressing ever-changing business challenges,” said Robert Nilsson, Chief Commercial Officer at VARGO®. “Delivering enhanced efficiency, boosting productivity and optimizing labor is core to both VARGO® and Sitma and we are thrilled about the value our collaboration will bring to new and existing customers.”

“VARGO® is a natural choice for a Sitma partnership,” said Francis McMahon, President of Sitma Americas. “Sitma’s mailer automation systems for fast and efficient packaging across a broad range of SKUs with VARGO®’s expertise in waveless and e-commerce order fulfillment, bring customers an integrated and synergistic solution built for the future.”

VARGO® Transforms Fulfillment Network for Luxury Consignment Retailer, The RealReal

GREENCREST on May 3, 2023

Arizona and New Jersey authentication centers get major upgrade

HILLIARD, Ohio — VARGO®, a leading provider of material-handling systems integration, warehouse execution software and equipment solutions for major fulfillment and distribution centers, will upgrade authentication centers in New Jersey and Arizona to support fulfillment operations for The RealReal, a major national luxury consignment marketplace. The 2022-23 project includes a 500,000-square-foot facility in Perth Amboy, NJ and 600,000 square feet in Phoenix, AZ. VARGO® state-of-the-art technology systems will help transform the online and brick-and-mortar retailer’s fulfillment network by increasing capacity to support their continued growth.

A three-phased approach has been planned to enhance each site’s performance and throughput capabilities. Phase one of the retrofits, which began in November 2022, will use MHS’s NBS-90 Polysort ship sorter for its unique capabilities to sort polybags more efficiently through traditional sorter techniques. Phase two will retrofit VARGO® Speedpack matching stations to increase capacity, reduce order cycle times and re-control the e-commerce-specific conveyor system.

In the third and final phase, MHS conveyance will be incorporated throughout the processing area, from pick module through matching and connecting with the new shipping sorter. VARGO®’s cloud based COFE® Warehouse Control System (WCS) functionality will be deployed throughout to drive conveyance and put walls.

“We are excited to partner with the RealReal to use our technology to help them provide a faster, more efficient fulfillment system and an improved customer experience,” said Bart Cera, VARGO® president and COO.

The complete system upgrade is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2023.