International Trade

Forwarders Face Fight For Survival

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...to be one of the top five transport and logistics providers in Europe. Worldwide, the group as a whole operates more than 500 offices in 50 countries, including the UK and Ireland, and has more than 19,000 employees. Total group annual turnover is currently €4.4bn, of which the road division generates €2.34bn and the air and sea division, €765m.

The managing director of DSV Air & Sea in the UK, Hugh Burnham, admitted the latter figure put the group still ‘far short’ of being a top 10 player in that sector. Right now, he said, it was probably in the leading 20-25 global air and sea freight companies. ‘We would need to make another major acquisition to really leap us into the top 10 and that has to be the objective.’

Burnham would not be drawn on the possible timing of any such move. However, the managing director of DSV Road in the UK, Jens Bjorn Andersen, suggested the group was currently still focused on completing the integration of Frans Maas. ‘With 7,000 employees and a billion euros turnover, that was the second largest acquisition we have ever made. We need to finalise the integration before we make another massive acquisition.’

Meanwhile, said Andersen, DSV was looking at additional smaller acquisitions to further strengthen its European road transport operations. ‘We are not big enough in Germany yet and we would also like to expand in France. Spain and Italy could do with more volume. I know the group is in discussions with some companies in Europe,’ he commented.

As far as global forwarding operations were concerned, Burnham suggested DSV was already present in ‘most of the places we want to be’ but highlighted the Middle East as one area where the group might try and look at making some acquisitions.... continued on page four >

 

 

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