OTS Logistics Group acquires Confreight
OTS Logistics Group has entered an agreement to acquire Confreight Group, an Antwerp, Belgium-based non-vessel-operating common carrier with extensive consolidation operations throughout Europe.
OTS Logistics Group will place Confreight under its Vanguard Logistics service. Through the acquisition, Vanguard will have an immediate and significant presence in Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Italy, Poland, Spain and the United Kingdom. The deal includes Confreight’s 12 European offices and Canadian branch.
Owen Glenn, executive chairman of OTS Logistics Group, said the Confreight acquisition is an essential step to increase the company’s global footprint. OTS Logistics Group was established in 2005 to manage the international agency management of NACA Logistics (USA).
“We acquired significant businesses in Asia Pacific, particularly in China in 2005 as part of our growth strategy. This agreement is a continuation of our global expansion strategy as we move to immediately establish our Vanguard brand in Europe,” Glenn said.
Confreight annually handles more than 850,000 cubic meters of freight. The neutral NVO is strong in exports to Hong Kong, Singapore, and the United States, and is a large carrier of imports from China and the United States. OTS Logistics Group said the Confreight acquisition would add more than $100 million in revenue and more than 300 employees to the group.
“This exercise took almost 18 months, but in the end we were attracted to the quality of the people and to the reputation that the Confreight brand enjoyed in the marketplace,” said Charles A. Brennan, chief operating officer for OTS Logistics Group.
Hans Mikkelsen, regional managing director for Vanguard, based in Antwerp, will oversee the integration of Confreight. The company plans to complete the corporate integration within 100 days after the deal is finalized on March 16. Confreight’s computer system will be integrated with Vanguard’s over a three-year period, Glenn said.
