Biddulphs revamps Zimbabwe operation

Biddulphs International is
probably best known for its
distinctly-liveried removals trucks
plying the roads in SA, but it is
a considerably more diversified
business than that, according to
MD Peter Farmerey.
“There are three main
divisions,” he told FTW,
“household and office moving;
overseas moving to and from SA;
and commercial distribution.”
These require not just the
transport element, but also a fully
developed clearing and forwarding
function for the overseas
components in its product line.
The company has also recently
been on an expansion path, with
diversification of its business in
SA, and also a complete revamp of
its Zimbabwe-based operation.
“We offer road, sea and air
transport,” Farmerey added, “have
10 branches and six sales offices
throughout the Republic, three
branches in Zimbabwe and one
in Botswana.”
The latter cross-border elements
have also recently gone through a
diversification process, with
the long-standing Zimbabwean
and Zambian routes being
joined by a number of other sub-
Saharan states, but not with the
same frequency.
“A lot of transport companies
have infrastructure in SA, but
many are very wary of crossborder
operation,” Farmerey said.
“That puts us in a very exclusive
position, being able to offer
both domestic and cross-border
moves in either full truck loads or
through consolidations.”
And, to add attraction to its
overseas function, Biddulphs has
established a separate international
division to provide all the
specialist services needed when
moving to or from South Africa.
Biddulphs International offers
a regular groupage service to the
UK, Australia, New Zealand, USA
and many other countries which
are popular destinations.
Its office moving division is
also a very mature service,
and Biddulphs has been
responsible for some of the largest
and most intricate office and
corporate moves in the country,
according
to Farmerey.
“One example of this was
the Mpumalanga provincial
government relocation,” he said.
“This consisted of moving the
contents of 32 buildings from
five towns and from various
locations across the country to
Mpumalanga. The move totalled
in excess of 550 000 cubic
feet. The items to be moved
included more than 80 safes, 2
500 computers, 20 000 boxes,
and zippel filing cabinets. The
programme was scheduled over a
six-month period.”
“In the commercial distribution
section, Biddulphs offers
professional logistic services,
customised to a customer’s
requirements and operating
needs,” Farmerey said.
“The company is also a
shareholder in, and member
wof, Unigroup Worldwide UTS,
which has over 1 500 global
service centres on six continents,”
Farmerey added.