Worldwide network ensures comprehensive service coverage

Meshak Mukozho, general manager of Ecleopass Enterprises, is a good example of the entrepreneurial spirit that has kept business alive in Zimbabwe. Qualified as an accountant, he decided in 1993 to move into the world of logistics, and then set about acquiring the knowledge and qualifications he would need. He now holds a diploma in customs, Iata certificates and a diploma in air freight and a diploma in freight forwarding. Ten years later, in 2005, he felt he was “equipped” to start a freight company. “When I started, it was just me, Meshak, on my own. By the end of 2005 we had opened an office at Beitbridge, and in 2007 offices in Chirundu, followed by Nyamapanda in 2008, then Mutare, and now an office in Johannesburg,” he says. He moved the head office into its present premises in 2009. Future growth will come from Ecleopass offering more than customs clearing, shipping and forwarding. Building on his company's expertise in customs clearing, shipping and forwarding, Mukozho is providing groupage and commodity broking services. “We are part of a worldwide network, and are one of the few companies that can source, ship and deliver commodities from Zimbabwe to anywhere in the world,” he says. It is an area of the business which he is expanding, as is freight forwarding and consolidation out of South Africa. Ecleopass has purchased two trucks – a 20 tonner and a 12-ton vehicle in order to develop this side of the business. This investment means that Ecleopass can offer both transport broking and transport services using its own vehicles. “We offer deliveries into Malawi, Zambia and Mozambique,” says Mukozho.