New office in Cwmbran on track for £1 million turnover in first year
Business is booming despite the recession at the new office recently opened by Geodis Calberson in Cwmbran, Wales.
The company branch is on target to achieve a turnover of £1 million from the office in its first year and is expecting to recruit more staff later this year.
The customer base in south and west Wales has been built up from scratch since the office opened last August and is expanding rapidly.
Geodis Calberson, is the UK road transport and logistics division of global logistics provider Geodis and provides transport and logistics solutions to a wide variety of businesses nationwide serving many industries, including pharmaceutical and healthcare, luxury goods, hi-tech and multimedia, leisure, manufacturing, consumer packaged goods and automotive, as well as fashion and textile and wines and spirits.
Regional Commercial Manager Chris Lacey, who runs the office in Ty Coch Industrial Estate, said: "Geodis Calberson is going from strength to strength in Wales.
"When I started here it was quite a challenge. We had no customers but now we seem to be beating our target of reaching a turnover of £1 million in the first year.
"I'm quite excited about what the rest of the year is going to bring. It is looking good. If it continues, we will be recruiting for field sales and customer service positions towards the end of the year."
Customers include a leading European manufacturer of wheelchairs, scooters and disability aids which has a factory in Wales that produces goods for distribution across the UK and Europe.
Other customers include a global company that develops and produces flavourings for major food manufacturers around the world, and another which specialises in selling expensive perfumes.
Mr Lacey said smaller companies were also showing an interest in the competitively-priced Geodis Calberson offering of palletised journeys, parcels and part-loads throughout the UK and Europe.
"Because there is a recession people are now willing to look around whereas before if they were used to working with a particular carrier they would stick with the carrier they always used," he said.
"But now they need to look at their costs. People want to see what is out there. Once people have tried the Geodis Calberson product, it literally speaks for itself and our overall service is excellent. Customers are saying it is fantastic.
"The value for money that Geodis Calberson offers is excellent. The exciting aspect of Geodis Calberson is we can offer unique solutions for any company - we sit down with customers and ask what we can do for them and apply a consultative approach."
Geodis Calberson is a fully-owned subsidiary of the French railway business SNCF Group, and is active in 120 countries on all five continents. It is the fourth-ranked end-to-end logistics provider in Europe.
Geodis Calberson UK is Geodis' groupage division in UK