Global logistics: Pilot Freight Services opens up new station in Amsterdam

Global transportation and logistics services provider Pilot Freight Services recently announced it opened up a new station in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Pilot officials said that this new location is the first Europe-based company-owned station, adding that it will provide new and existing customers with various services, including air, ocean, ground, and logistics.

Pilot CEO Richard Phillips told LM that the company first discussed opening up this station in August 2010.

“Today, our customers’ businesses often rely on international shipping and logistics,” said Phillips. “In order to offer the best possible customer service and transit times in Europe, as well as our sophisticated logistics solutions, it makes sense to have our own people in this strategic location. The idea of opening this station was first discussed in August 2010, and Gordon Branov, Pilot’s Executive VP, Business Development, took his first trip to Amsterdam in November 2010 to start a facility search and the business entity processes.”

The Amsterdam station, said Phillips, will give companies exporting freight from Europe easier access to its network in North America, Asia and many other countries around the world, adding that Pilot expects much of the initial traffic through the Amsterdam station to be coming from the U.S. to European destinations. The Pilot CEO said the company anticipates that over time Pilot will see many more European companies taking advantage of its well-established domestic network.

Regarding Pilot’s customer mix in the Amsterdam station, Phillips said the initial customers include a few high tech corporations.

“The markets they’ll be targeting aren’t much different than the U.S.—medical, high tech, manufacturing, pharma and aerospace,” he noted. “The station was launched and is managed by two veteran Pilot employees [Gilles Auzanneau and Alexandra Ryan, who will be responsible for all sales and operations] who transferred from the US. They have already made two local hires. Additional hires will be made as business develops.”

When asked what the biggest competitive advantages of this station are for Pilot, Phillips said that having its own staffers on the ground in Amsterdam will allow it to provide better service and transit times to its customers, making its international business stronger and helping Pilot better compete with other shipping companies and freight forwarders.

“We also expect this opening to lead to additional stations in Europe,” said Phillips.