International network uses nine hubs ALTHOUGH NOT yet a year old, Hellmann's Hot Express has rapidly expanded into one of the regional/international main players in its industry sector, according to national manager Ludwig Botha.
With its birthday due on May 17, Hot Express has already expanded its national office network to seven branches - Johannesburg, Durban, Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, Pretoria, Richards Bay, and Newcastle. It also now links up its domestic operation with its own depots/offices in Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia and Swaziland.
Add to that its tie-up with the Hellmann-owned Global Sky Express, and the operation routes its express product through an international network of nine hubs and 150 branches around the world. The latest of these is a new hub in London - serving the UK and US markets - and easing the stress on the Frankfurt hub, which the SA operation uses for distributing out to the rest of Europe, and to access the Far East and Australasian distribution points.
According to Botha's market analysis, the company's domestic express product yields 60% of its income, and intercontinental 40% - with the regional service biting away at both of these.
The main focus for the SA management of Hot Express is currently the development of that regional chain through the BLNS countries, according to Botha. This is our drive for the next few months, he said, as we see such potential in the express service to-and-from these countries. Of the four countries, Botha highlights Botswana as the prime growth point. With the rapidly growing car assembly industry in that country, added to its traditional strength in diamond mining, it is now rated as one of the fastest-growing economies in Africa, he said. But Namibia and Swaziland are not far behind as far as our express traffic is concerned. Hot Express now offers a guaranteed overnight express delivery to the main centres in each of these states.
In its track-and-trace network, Hot Express is dedicated to the Internet web.
In-house we have Hellmann's e-mail network for internal communication, said Botha. But the best way to talk to clients is via the ÔNet. We have our own Hellmann's Home Page on the Web, and clients can log-in and shortly get their own track-and-trace information instantly, and at minimal cost. For those who want to see what Hellmann's Hot Express has to offer, why not call-up the company's page. You'll find it at http://hellmann.co.za/
