Röhlig Logistics – preliminary 2023 numbers

PRESS RELEASE

Preliminary business figures – Röhlig Logistics achieves strong result

Bremen, 27 February, 2024 – Thanks to the acquisition of new customers and the corresponding increase in orders, the owner-managed logistics company Röhlig Logistics achieved a strong result in the 2023 financial year.

Philip W. Herwig, Managing Partner at Röhlig Logistics, explains: “In a challenging market environment, we achieved an EBIT of around EUR 20 million in 2023, to which all of our core business areas – sea freight, air freight and contract logistics – contributed. In view of the stabilisation of global supply chains and the associated decline in freight rates, the figures for the 2023 reporting year are, as expected, below the record results of 2021 and 2022. We have adapted quickly and flexibly to the changed market situation and have thus expanded our earnings very solidly compared to the pre-pandemic level.”

Röhlig also successfully completed its Blue Star strategy programme at the end of 2023. As part of the ambitious growth strategy, the logistics service provider has significantly strengthened its profitability in its core business and pushed ahead with numerous projects. In addition to the consistent expansion of the product and service offering, particular focus was placed on the continuous expansion of the global network and the further development of the digital service portfolio.

Positive effects in the core markets and expansion of the network

The gross profit generated in the 2023 financial year totalled around EUR 222 million. The core markets of Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates made a particular contribution to this. The country organisations in Mexico, Italy and France also recorded very positive developments.

Following extensive preparations in the 2022 financial year, Röhlig entered another core Latin American market, Brazil, on 1 January 2023. With around 30 employees on site, the company already has a strong commercial and operational setup. Röhlig has also expanded its global presence by opening a national organisation in Japan with a branch in Osaka and strengthened its presence with new offices in Spain, Belgium, Malaysia, India and Thailand.

Strong result despite the difficult market environment

The sea freight market was characterised by declining freight volumes in the past 2023 financial year. The market-related decline in volumes was also noticeable in air freight, and the end of the coronavirus pandemic eased global supply chains. However, by consistently focusing on new customers and new business, Röhlig was able to buck the trend and increase the number of orders in all business areas by a good six per cent last year.

There were major regional differences in contract logistics demand. Due to the continuing requests for storage space in South East Asia and Oceania, Röhlig significantly expanded its local capacities. The logistics company has also successfully expanded its contract logistics business to three additional markets: Chile, Uruguay and Thailand. In total, Röhlig now has more than 40 warehouses and around 265,000 square metres of storage space worldwide.

Hylton Gray, CEO Sea Freight, Air Freight, Contract Logistics & Sales at Röhlig Logistics, explains: “Ongoing geopolitical risks and trouble spots as well as market volatility have characterised the past financial year and will continue to be a challenge. Nevertheless, we were able to successfully expand our market position by tapping into new markets and onboarding numerous new customers. Our investment in our sales team, which we have expanded by 100 employees, has contributed to this development. Our increased focus in key verticals is also paying off. We have strategically developed our expertise in areas such as automotive logistics and battery logistics, which are becoming increasingly important, as well as in the Healthcare & Pharmaceuticals sector. Numerous network countries have received external certifications such as the IATA CEIV certificate for the transport of lithium batteries or GDP certification for the handling of pharmaceutical products, which underlines our global expertise.”

Outlook

“In addition to growth in our core business, we are continuing to focus on expanding our sales and digital expertise, continuously expanding our global network and developing our employees, even in the current weakened economic situation. This approach is also reflected in our new, three-year #Connected for Growth strategy programme, which is based on our three most important success factors: People, Network and Sales,” says Philip W. Herwig.