MSC sells interest in Aprile to Savino Del Bene

An MSC spokesperson told American Shipper the reason it sold its interest in Genoa, Italy-based logistics company Aprile to Savino Del Bene was to exit the freight forwarding business.    Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) has sold its interest in the Genoa, Italy-based logistics company Aprile to Florence-based forwarder Savino Del Bene. Both companies have many vertical markets in common.
   “The reason for the sale was to exit freight forwarding,” an MSC spokesperson told American Shipper.
   The two merging forwarders both have a number of specializations, including some that have historic links to products for which Italy is a famed producer, according to the websites of the two merging forwarders.
   For example, Aprile said its specialties include project cargo, “groupage” or freight consolidation, refrigerated cargo, air freight, logistics and fast moving consumer goods.
   Aprile also has a unit that specializes in the movement of stone. Aprile said the markets for granite and marble have changed and have become a fully globalized trade, adding complexity due to logistics management. “That is why we decided to address this issue with a fully specialized unit,” Aprile said.
   Aprile also has a team that specializes in the movement of tomato paste. Its capabilities include the transport by special vehicles, allowing customers to increase the cargo weight loaded into the container, have special and innovative packaging for the transport of products, and have relationships with the major international logistics operators (including shipping lines, railways and transportation companies). That allows Aprile “to be competitive in terms of logistics management, optimization of costs, and to cooperate with the leading global manufacturers and traders of tomato paste,” the company said.
   Savino del Bene also has a unit that specializes in the movement of stone and tile. Its other vertical specialties include fashion, pharmaceuticals and healthcare products, fresh fruit and vegetables, foodstuffs and beverages, furniture and housewares, project cargo for the oil and gas, renewable energy companies, machinery, automobiles, chemicals and electronics. It also has a specialty in moving humanitarian aid and other commodities for NGOs and governments.
   Last year, Savino del Bene moved 423,000 TEUs of ocean cargo and 58 million kilograms of air cargo. In 2015, the company had 3,200 employees and sales reached 1.225 billion euros (U.S. $1.337 billion).