A logistics portal set up for his own company has grown into a regional stand-alone business for Walvis Bay-based Andre Klynsmith.He set up Laaimylorrie in 2007, but did not pay too much attention to it until around a year ago when he saw that it had built a following of thousands of users. Cargo owners and their agents can find affordable transport at short notice. The site allows hauliers to advertise that they have capacity on a specific load, and for cargo owners and agents to find loads available in their vicinity.It provides a marketing lifeline for smaller operators.Freight owners or agents can request a quote through a form on the landing page. The request is automatically sent to all the suitable truck owners on the database. “All members need to do is to monitor their email and to respond as quickly as possible to the request,” says Klynsmith. Larger companies use the service when a load has fallen through or where they do not have backhaul cargo secured. “Unfortunately, the website was dated, and it had a large number of chancers registered.“Windhoek-based Alex Silheu designed a new site, and we cleaned up the database so that it now has only registered companies on it.”This provides the cargo owner and haulier with the assurance that the party they are dealing with is legitimate, according to Klynsmith.There are now more than 5 000 registered members, representing nearly 300 companies in the Southern African Development Community, and nearly 500 trucks. Registered users pay a membership fee that ranges from R360 to R660 a month, depending on the level.
