Spanish express and parcel delivery company Nacex has been less impacted by the recession thancompetitors due to its main focus on the IT and healthcare sectors, a senior manager told
CEP-Research. The company is now investing in its network and services, and also seeking moreinternational partners.Shipment volumes have fallen only about 5% so far this year which is much better thanthe estimated 40% overall decline in the Spanish market, Paul Kil, the company’sinternational manager, said in an interview at the recent Post-Expo in Hannover. Nacex expects toend this year with a moderate drop of 3-4% while the competitors will be down about 50%, he stated.
In 2008, Nacex was the only Spanish express and parcel company that increased its shipmentvolumes with a 1.5% rise to over 15 million shipments, Kil said. The company’s turnover reached€245 million. Nacex has 311 branches throughout Spain, Portugal and Andorra, operates 29distribution hubs, a fleet of 1,260 delivery vehicles and employs 2,240 staff.
Nacex had benefited in relative terms from its position in the healthcare sector which isless affected by the financial crisis and from its operational quality, Kil explained. “With ourmain focus on healthcare and IT, we are better off than the others. We invest heavily into IT andall our hubs are fully automated. In addition, we use video traceability so we can look up theparcels and see the images of the goods in the hubs. In Spain, we provide the best technology amongthe local express and parcel operators.”
“Our transport is not cheap, so people who use our services normally ship products that areworth the money or need to be there the next day without any exception. With a 99.8% on timedelivery rate, we are one of the best companies in Europe and the best in Spain in terms ofquality,” he added.
Nacex is investing both in its network and services at present. In Madrid, it is currentlyconstructing a new hub with state-of-the art technology. “The new hub will be located in adifferent place close to the airport which is very important as we have more and more customersoutside Spain. And we are also the only company that can offer a very late pick-up in Madrid withnext-day delivery via our air hub. Even the big integrators can not provide this service,” Kilexplained.
The Spanish operator recently opened a new depot at Alfena, Oporto, in northern Portugal. Thefacility has 1,800 sqm of warehousing surface, 20 truck docks and capacity to sort up to 10,000packages per hour. It also has an integrated video surveillance and traceability system to trackall packages through the depot, and thus maximise security.
This year, the company launched a new product ‘Europe Premium’ that offers late cut-off timesin a European country with shipments delivered within Spain and Portugal the next day, before08:30, before 10:00 and before 13:00. Next year, Nacex plans to launch next-day delivery before12:00 instead of before 13:00.
One other recent highlight was the introduction of Nacex Net, an online tool allowingcustomers to document shipments, request complementary services, and obtain total traceability andstatistical reports for their shipments.
Outside Spain and Portugal, Nacex works together with partners via sales agents in theindividual countries. Some of the partners include Ciblex in France, Speedlink in Amsterdam and KEPin Germany. It is a win-win situation for both parties, Kil said.
Looking ahead, the Spanish express and parcel operator plans to further expand itsinternational network with new partnerships. “Italy is a very good market for us and we also planto find a partner in the UK. We see these countries as a good opportunity for growth because theyare more difficult than other countries in terms of delivery. Italy is a very long country and youcan’t use one entry point but you have to cover the north, the middle and the south, and it is moreor less the same thing for the UK,” Kil explained.
Founded in 1995, Nacex belongs to the Logista Group (Grupo Logista) of companies, the leadingall round logistics operator in Spain and Portugal, and one of the most important in southernEurope.
