Forwarding and
logistics major
a. hartrodt
has launched a
concerted drive to grow
its Africa business – with
groupage high on the
agenda.
“We see Africa as a market
of significant potential,”
says newly appointed CEO
Guido Ghiselli. “South Africa
has established itself as a
supplier to the region and we
plan to develop our services
to tap into that potential.
“We already have some
agents in Africa and are in
close discussions with several
others. Most have worked
with us as handling agents
but since we are now looking
at expansion we are looking
for partners with whom we
can develop.”
Outgoing managing
director Gerald Rowe will
spearhead the company’s
over-border expansion
efforts until his term of
office ends at the end of next
year.
And for Ghiselli, who
has been based in Japan for
the past 20 years, it’s about
creating a service ethic that
is globally recognised.
“Industry is moving away
from a culture of ‘that’s
Africa’ when it comes to
service.
“Shippers here and in
neighbouring countries are
desperate for supply chain
visibility – and that’s where
we intend to implement
systems that will provide
quality and stability of
service.”
Over the past few decades
hartrodt’s groupage product
has focused largely on
Europe and the East. “Our
footprint in both these
markets is strong – and the
idea is to build on those
strengths, distributing into
the continent.
Groupage is part of the
company’s DNA. It was
born as an NVOCC and its
footprint has always been
strong in seafreight and LCL
cargo.
It currently co-loads in
an alliance – branded Team
Player – on certain routes.
“The growth of the neutral
NVOCC has fragmented
the market to a
certain extent,
but as a group
we are still
able to provide
a variety of
services on
countless
routes.”
The bottom
line is that in
the current
economic
environment customers need
flexible solutions to help
them with their stock levels
– and that’s where groupage
comes into play.
“We’re looking
to provide a doorto-
door service by
introducing systems
that can increase
the level of visibility
for the customer and
give us a better level
of control.”
INSERT & CAPTION
It’s about creating a
service ethic that is
globally recognised.
Guido Ghiselli
