Interview with
Mr. Szymon Lompe
Business Development Manager
For starters, what can you tell our readers about the history and ownership of Magemar Logistics?
At the beginning, I think it would be appropriate to provide some key facts and numbers about Magemar–Magetra Group. The Family Group has existed for more than 85 years and it is currently involved in transport, forwarding, logistics and added services. The Group provides door-to-door deepsea & shortsea transport, vessel chartering, road / rail / air transport, multimodal & intermodal transport, handling, storage, customs clearance, insurance and expertise & advice. Magemar–Magetra Group numbers around 600 staff members and has a global turnover of around 125 million euros. The companies within the group are located in Belgium (HQ), Luxembourg, France, Poland, Italy & China. Magemar–Magetra Group owns 3 warehouses in Belgium with a storage area of more than 20,000 m2, 360 trucks and trailers & 500 swap bodies. The Group also leases storage yards in Antwerp (BE) and Szczecin (PL) and manages its own train solutions both ways between Belgium & Italy (3 train departures each week).
As per your question, our history dates back to 1937 when Mr. Oscar Mairlot created the first company of the Group, Magemon, which specialized in warehousing and handling in the port of Liege in Belgium.
The Magetra Company which focuses on road transport & logistics was established in 1971 and is still operating today. During the years of its operation, it has acquired many companies while developing the scope and territory of its activities.
The Magemar Company responsible for maritime activities was founded in 1997 in Belgium and just two years later Magemar Poland was established (HQ located in Szczecin). Due to a big demand from the Polish market, the company rapidly developed domestic transport, its own shipping activity, and opened its own customs agency.
Year 2005 was key to us as Magemar Poland as it opened a second office in Gdynia mainly responsible for shipping of containers and full door-to-door service and customs formalities. The Magemar Poland Company gained an 80% share in the market of granite traffic to Poland and started directly to cooperate with the biggest granite traders and biggest Polish receivers in just 5 years from the moment the company was established. The Dongemar Company in Xiamen (China) was opened in 2006 to support both Magemar Belgium and Magemar Poland with increasing demand for containers handled from China. The company became associated in 2014 with its Chinese partner, the Hunicorn Company which is among the biggest and strongest forwarding companies in China.
Year 2022 was the most important year for us. Due to the significant increase of turnover and volumes of shipments handled as from 2005, the owners decided to create an independent company named Magemar Logistics (formerly a branch office of Magemar Poland).
It is worthwhile to say that it is a family-owned company. From the very beginning, the company has been passed from generation to generation and has remained in the hands of the same family up to the present day.
If you would like to find out more, please visit our website.
What made you decide to establish Magemar Logistics?
The beginnings of Magemar Logistics date back to 2005, when the Magemar Group decided to open an office in Gdynia. Due to the increasing volume of goods coming to Poland, this was a necessary step for further development. Gdynia and neighbouring Gdansk have long been the main sea ports for the Polish market, so the presence in this location was more than obvious. These ports are now also important transit points for the Ukraine, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, all Scandinavian countries in the north, and other countries located in the Baltic Sea area. In 2022, we decided to change our name from Magemar Polska to Magemar Logistics. Together with our other partners in the group such as Magetra, Magemar and Dongemar, we are now a strong logistics company that can offer all modes of transport such as sea, air, road and rail.
I understand that one of the specialities of Magemar is Short Sea logistics. Can you tell us more?
We should start with the definition of Shortsea Shipping. It is maritime transport which enables trade between nearby ports. Magemar Logistics offers multimodal transport characterized by the possibility of transporting goods in containers while using various types of transport, primarily sea, rail, inland water and road transport as part of short sea shipping services. It creates endless opportunities to provide alternative service products in comparison to typical road transport. The solutions we provide are very cost-effective and eco-friendly due to the scale effect (the possibility of transporting a much greater number of containers at one time by barge, train or ship). The so-called “scale effect” significantly reduces the structure of unit transport cost, in this particular case the cost of transport of a single container.
According to the Eurostat, the definition of Short Sea Shipping is sea transport carried out over relatively short distances, which is the opposite of intercontinental sea transport called Deep Sea Shipping. Regarding the geographical scope, Eurostat takes into account trade exchange between European Union countries, countries associated with the EU, EU candidate countries, and also countries in the Mediterranean and Black Sea. In the case of most of key transport routes, Magemar Logistics can offer direct service products since we offer the possibility of shipping containers from Polish, German, Dutch and Belgian ports. We focus mainly on development of the traffic from Poland to Great Britain, Ireland, Spain, Portugal and Scandinavian countries (Norway, Sweden, Finland) in case of northern Europe. We use the port of Koper in Slovenia frequently in the case of shipments to some countries located in the Mediterranean and offer our clients a much shorter transit time and reduce significantly the risk of possible delays due to fact that we use direct connections of vessels (reduce the number of transshipments involved during the transport process). The knowledge about transport routes coverage of particular shipping lines, the possibility of using specific intermodal operators to connect inland part of the transport with key ports, and the knowledge of implementation of crossdocking solutions in case of some inquiries allows us to precisely select the resources, equipment and method of delivery in order to carry out the door-to-door forwarding order according to our client’s needs and expectations.
I would like to also point out the main benefits of Shortsea transport:
1) LOWER COSTS OF TRANSPORT (SAVINGS) – we analyse the delivery process of our clients and suggest solutions that actually reduce costs. We recommend the optimal container size, transport route, and delivery schedule.
2) DOOR-TO-DOOR DELIVERY IN A TIMELY MANNER (ON TIME) – we plan various means of transport and meet delivery schedules. We efficiently manage large delivery streams, guaranteeing unloading in the indicated slots, thus ensuring the continuity of deliveries.
3) VARIOUS EQUIPMENT TYPES – we analyse our clients’ inquiries and suggest the optimal equipment type, the most popular are 20-foot and 40-foot containers and 45′ High Cube Pallet Wide (HCPW) containers, which can fit 33 Euro pallets, the same amount of pallets that can be transported with a standard tarp trailer. Special equipment is also available upon request (for example controlled temperature, open top & flat rack containers).
4) CARGO SECURITY (UNDER CONTROL) – we transport cargo in sealed containers and use guarded and monitored trans-shipment sites to prevent unauthorized access to the goods.
5) CARE FOR THE ENVIRONMENT (IT’S WORTH TRANSPORTING RESPONSIBLY) – by promoting multi-modal transport, which is much more environmentally-friendly and significantly reduces CO2 emissions in comparison to road transport, we act ecologically.
6) GREATER LOAD WEIGHT (WE MOVE MORE FOR LESS) – we carry a higher gross weight of goods in containers – up to 26 tonnes per transport, higher DMC. If necessary, we store goods in containers at no extra cost for days off in port.
7) STOCK CONTROL (REGULARLY) – we monitor delivery processes, especially in the case of homogeneous, fast-moving goods, which allows for ongoing re-stocking and helps avoid shortages and critical points.
If you would like to find out more, please visit our website.
There are many logistics companies in Poland. In your own words, why do you believe that customers should contact you first?
It is actually a very good question as there are a lot of transport & forwarding companies in Poland. The answer is actually very simple:
- the knowledge and experience we have gained already during the arrangement process of hundreds of thousands of transport orders arranged from the moment the office in Gdynia was opened
- the conclusions which were drawn from failures
- the very wide portfolio of services we provide
- the everyday passion in what we do
- our loyalty not only to our customers but also vendors
- and the open mind we always have to solve problems together.
I really say those words from the bottom of my heart as from the very beginning I have worked for this company, I knew that I’m at the right place with the right people to offer the best possible door-to-door services to our customers.
Our newsletter focuses a lot on moving oversized and project cargoes. Do you also have experience in this field?
We are very experienced in moving oversized and project cargoes. On a daily basis, we move a variety of cargoes on flat racks and open tops such as industrial machinery, yachts, boats, wooden crates and much more. We also provide a comprehensive service for oversized loads from the shipper’s door, professional stuffing and lashing according to maritime rules, survey reports, and so on. We know well how to take care of various out of gauge (OOG) cargo with full support and the best knowledge of our professional team. Last year, we had a great opportunity to arrange a full charter from Gdynia to Jorf Lasfar (Morocco). It was an amazing experience, and we showed that nothing is impossible for us!
How do you view the competition from some of the shipping lines who nowadays ALSO wish to offer logistics-to-door to the customers, thereby competing with the freight forwarders?
We will not change this fact, and we need to get used to it. I really do think that there will always be room for forwarding companies like the Magemar–Magetra Group with their own assets. We need to also take under consideration the fact that not all clients have time to check available solutions on the market on their own in order to choose the right and suitable one for their company nor want to hire more people within their organizations in order to take over some of the duties which are being provided by freight forwarding companies. Many companies arrange transports on different transport routes. They would need very well-qualified staff to find the right solutions and gain the right knowledge to coordinate it with particular shipping lines (get used to their systems / tools / even find proper information in the right sections on their websites). What I mean is that it is much easier for such companies to outsource such services and use forwarding companies which can use and offer all available solutions on the market and provide many value added services and do for customers much more than the shipping line will offer (give an individual approach to each company – not a standardized one). My advice is very simple as the market will be indeed more difficult for freight forwarders in upcoming years: We should stay in very close contact with our clients, focus on quality issues as they will mainly differ us from the shipping lines, and we should all develop long term, cooperation based on trust between each other to protect our businesses in a better way.
How do you foresee the business for this New Year of 2024?
I am a very optimistic person, and I see the future usually in bright colours. It is probably because each year our company is stronger & stronger, becomes visible in new markets, and offers new product services. We should not forget about the perfect location of Poland in the heart of Europe as Poland connects both the WEST with the EAST and the NORTH with the SOUTH. Many of the present and future corridors of the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) go through Poland. Poland is the first stop of main rail corridors from Asia to Europe, and the Malaszewicze rail terminal in Poland has definitely become one the biggest hubs in the case of rail transport from Asia. Magemar Logistics offers a wide portfolio of services through Malaszewicze too, all customs related services, FCL trucking and transloading of cargo through a reputable bonded warehouse located in Malaszewicze and trucking arranged by standard tarp trailers on longer distances. We should add that all Polish ports transload more and more containers each year, not only for companies located in Poland but also in Slovakia, the Czech Republic and the Ukraine. We also arrange more containers in transit to all other countries located in the Baltic Sea. There are also really big investments still planned in rail, road, and both rail and sea terminal infrastructure. We will have new hub ports located in Poland in the nearest future (Swinoujscie and Gdynia). We cannot forget that Poland along with Romania also became strategic partners for the Ukraine in case of transport services and will benefit for years once the war ends and the Ukraine will be rebuilt.
The macroeconomic forecasts for the upcoming years are also positive for Poland. The economy should be better as economic growth is set to accelerate to 2.7% in 2024. Private consumption is expected to be the main growth driver, supported by rising real wages, additional government social support, and receding inflationary pressures. Public consumption is also set to contribute robustly to growth on the back of new additional fiscal support measures plus rising domestic demand is expected to fuel imports. We also expect higher investments as EU funds should be unblocked for Poland this year. In 2025, GDP growth is projected to pick up to 3.2% due to strong private consumption and an uptick in investment fuelled by EU funds. Risks to the outlook relate mainly to possible delays in the implementation of EU-funded investment. Inflation peaked in early 2023 and eased rapidly in the second half of the year due to decelerating commodity and food prices. Lower energy commodity price assumptions are set to further curb inflation over the course of 2024 and 2025. HICP inflation is projected at 5.2% in 2024 and 4.7% in 2025.
How would it be best for our readers to get in touch with you?
First of all, thank you for talking to us. It is always a pleasure to share our experience, and of course, I encourage everyone to get in touch, as we believe that a wide network of partners from all over the world allows you to benefit from the experience of every member of the community.
We recommend contacting us via email sales@magemarlog.pl. Depending on the subject of your message, it will be redirected to a specialist in your area. We also have a contact form on our website: https://magemarlog.pl/en/contact/ [Scroll down on the page to find the form–Editor]. We will be happy to look into any matter and try to find the best solution.
