Customer innovation helps Gotrans growth

The African market is one of significant growth potential, according to Stephen van Zutphen, director of Gotrans Freight Services. The next few years are a period of high expectation for Van Zutphen, with opportunities that he describes as “endless”. “SA is truly the gateway into Africa,” he said, “enabling us to source and provide commodities at competitive rates by both air and sea. “In the global context, the African market has provided a fundamental stepping stone for us during 2009 and 2010, and we anticipate further large increases in 2011.” West African markets have contributed a lot towards the company’s 30% year-on-year growth, although East Africa has also played a noticeable role in this high growth rate. But a lot of the positive growth that company has been experiencing has to be credited to the innovation of its customers – large contractual companies in the US and UK markets which have allowed Gotrans to use these economies of scale to remain competitive in the ever-tightening field of relief efforts. However, Van Zutphen said that freight forwarders still faced many challenges when dealing with Africa. “Especially when it comes to being seen as a reliable and consistent agent,” he added. “But we have managed to streamline our operation so that it offers a service that we can be proud of. “We understand that there are specific problems when it comes to dealing with Africa. But we have found that, through commitment, communication and capital resources, these hurdles can successfully be negotiated.” Gotrans Freight intends to continue offering its extensive range of services in logistics and clearing and forwarding on both international and national levels, according to Van Zutphen. “Our outlook for Africa is positive,” he told FTW, “although we will still have to keep a close eye on all the cut-price products flowing in from the eastern markets. “But, when cheaper alternatives are being offered, we always remind our customers that price is negotiable – but service and quality are not.”