The Central Europe, Balkans and Middle East zone is one of the priority markets within which GEFCO is working to strengthen its presence.
Pierre-Jean Lorrain, who was previously Managing Director of GEFCO Italy, is to become head of the Central Europe, Balkans and Middle East zone for the GEFCO Group.
“This dynamic group of countries which is going through a process of economic change is set to develop considerably. GEFCO is adapting its organisation to meet the opportunities that will be provided by these sources of growth. It gives me great pride to be part of the ambitious plans that the Group has for this strategic region, especially the encouragement of closer collaboration between sales and operations”, states Pierre-Jean Lorrain.
A strategic hub for logistics flows
Located at the crossroads between Western Europe, the Baltic States and Russia, this zone offers tremendous growth opportunities thanks to its thriving manufacturing sector, not just in the automotive industry – the cornerstone of GEFCO’s expertise – but also in the aviation, energy, consumer goods and industrial sectors.
GEFCO has profited from the opportunities presented by this dynamic region with the recent opening of its subsidiaries in Bulgaria (2011), the United Arab Emirates (2013) and Croatia (2013), adding to the zone’s pre-existing subsidiaries in Austria, the Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Turkey.
The newly-opened subsidiary in Croatia will serve to strengthen and improve logistics flows with many neighbouring countries: Italy, Slovenia, Hungary, Serbia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro. In the United Arab Emirates, the opening of a branch in Dubai will provide GEFCO with an ideal platform for speeding up its business development in the Middle East, Africa and Asia. The fact that the different subsidiaries are constantly working together in what is a very tight inter-country network will make logistics flows a lot easier throughout Europe and will enable GEFCO to maximise the region’s vast logistics potential.
Unique expertise serving the manufacturing world
As a leader in Europe in automotive logistics and a standard-setter for manufacturing logistics, GEFCO has developed a range of expertise covering the entire supply chain. Specialising in integrated logistics, the Group provides Overland and Overseas goods transport and warehousing logistics, as well as the management of reusable packaging unit flows, customs engineering and tax representation on behalf of its customers. This expertise is deployed in numerous fields and in this zone the conditions are ideal for GEFCO to become the leading provider of diversified manufacturing logistics.
Industry, mass retail and energy are the growth centres in which the Group aims to develop its businesses in the region, by being able to constantly adapt to the changing market. “Our goal is to be as attentive as possible to local demand. As well as consolidating our dominant position in the automotive logistics market, we’ll be looking to achieve even greater growth in these other sectors”, points out Pierre-Jean Lorrain.
The Group counts a number of household names known the world over among its biggest customers in the zone,, such as Electrolux and Schneider Electrics, in addition to Ford, General Motors and Volkswagen Audi.
A preferential platform for trade
One of GEFCO’s strategic priorities is the strengthening of its businesses within the zone, but also with the many neighbouring countries which are its principal economic partners.
The flows to and from Russia, as well as trade with countries in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), are also expected to grow more quickly, benefitting from the considerable opportunities offered as a result of GEFCO joining the RZD Group. Cooperation with Western European countries such as France and Italy will also be essential. GEFCO will thus be acting as a facilitator of flows between the two trade zones by virtue of its unique integrated network.
To ensure its growth in the zone, GEFCO is also looking to recruit candidates for many different roles within the business (management, operations and support functions).
