Global Logistics: Agility set to acquire Cosa Freight

Pending deal expected to augment Agility's Trans Pacific services

Jeff Berman, Group News Editor -- Logistics Management, 6/5/2008

HONG KONG— Agility (formerly PWC Logistics), a global provider of integrated supply chain services, said this week it has signed a conditional agreement to acquire Cosa Freight. The deal is expected to be finalized in the coming weeks.

Cosa Freight is a full service ocean freight forwarder with 200 employees in six China-based locations, and it also has offices in Hong Kong, the United States, and Canada. Agility said in a statement it has a full range of services for the retail sector, including origin consolidation and upstream inventory management programs in China and warehousing, trans-loading, and delivery in the U.S. Agility added that this acquisition will further strengthen Agility’s network capability in China and increase the range of services in major trading and manufacturing centers throughout China.

Agility Vice President of Marketing Jerry Levy told LM in an interview that this deal has various benefits for both Agility and its shipper customers.

“On the origin cargo management side, one of the things Cosa Freight brings to Agility is their strength [of services] in China,” said Levy. “We think this acquisition is a natural fit and will put us in a very strengthened competitive position in North America, as we are now going to be able to offer origin cargo services in more areas of China.”

Levy defined origin cargo management services as consolidation, packing, and taking groups of consignments and consolidations, labeling, packaging, and delivering containers to ports for steamship operators.

On the origin side, Levy noted that Agility will now be able to offer shippers a fill solution all the way to the store in the consuming markets of the Americas, which makes Cosa Freight a natural fit. And he added that Cosa has a good network in the Trans Pacific region, which will be helpful in helping Agility expand its footprint there.

“Agility has a very strong ‘direct-to-store’ operation in North America,” said Levy, “and what this allows us to do is have the same receivers in North America take advantage of these value-added services that Cosa Freight brings through its origin cargo management services, as well as enhance our presence on that trade lane.”

The Agility statement noted that Cosa Freight was established in Shenzhen in 1998 and is a licensed freight forwarder and NVOCC, providing local transportation throughout China, bonded warehousing, buyer consolidation services, international freight FCL/CFS services, Customs clearance, documentation, inspection and insurance brokerage. It also said that Cosa's value-added services include billing, cash collection & banking, kitting, packaging & repacking and reverse logistics.