Consolidator CFR Freight’s airfreight division has launched a new service, Consol+, which offers forwarders a priority service at an affordable rate.
“We saw a gap in the market for a product that falls between a general cargo service and an express service as we have seen that while most forwarders are price-driven in a tough economic market, they still require a good service,” said CFR Freight national airfreight rates manager, Megan Ekermans.
She told FTW that the service had been launched on August 1 this year as a trial-run – ahead of the peak season – to ensure it would be fully operational by the time demand surged. The service covers South America, Africa, Asia/ Middle East and Europe.
It was however currently only available for cargo flights out of Johannesburg, explained Ekermans.
“Based on the industry response to the Johannesburg service, we may extend it to the coastal branches,” she added. According to Ekermans, while there is no uplift guarantee on the Consul + service, the shipment has a greater chance of uplift and the forwarder therefore has a better chance of moving cargo more speedily.
“Essentially the shipment is treated with greater urgency than general cargo by the carriers, allowing for a higher chance of uplift than if a forwarder had a standard booking with the carriers,” she said.
The Consol+ rate is higher than that of general cargo but lower than the published express cargo rate.
