Amsterdam, 22 June 2009. Today, General Logistics Systems B.V., Amsterdam (GLS), the European parcel, express and logistics service provider, released its 2008/9 results. Despite tough economic conditions in the second half of the year, the GLS Group continued to grow and invest in its European network.

Compared with the prior year, GLS Group revenues increased by 2.4 per cent to € 1.8 billion and the number of parcels shipped rose to 350 million. The 2008/9 results include the positive trading conditions in the first six months. In the second half of the year, the results were impacted by the global economic crisis, with prices as well as volumes coming under considerable pressure. This impacted EBIT, which fell by 7.5 per cent to € 149 million.

Parcels perform better than freight and express

“Volumes as well as turnover and profits were lower than our expectations“, says Rico Back, CEO of GLS Group. “Considering the particularly difficult economic environment, the overall result is nevertheless satisfactory. As a logistics provider that services almost all sectors, GLS is not immune from the crisis. The results, however, demonstrate the strength and resilience of GLS’ European road-based network.”

Standard parcels is GLS’ core business. In this area, decreases in volume due to the crisis were less pronounced than in other logistics segments such as freight and express. “During times of crisis, companies increasingly send small shipments instead of larger volumes”, says Back. “In addition, many companies also prefer to use more lower priced standard products instead of Premium Services. GLS’ strong road-based European parcel network is perfectly suited for gaining additional volumes from this
trend.”

Cautious outlook but continued investment

Last year, the GLS Group invested € 66 million in capital expenditure to further strengthen its networks’ quality, structure and coverage. “In times of crisis, competition becomes more intense and only companies that offer their customers high quality and competitive services will be successful in the long run”, explains Back.

The objective of GLS is to maintain its high service quality and invest in the future despite the economic crisis and decreasing parcel volumes. “In the past months, we have adjusted our capacities to match parcel volumes”, says Back. “However, we will also continue to invest in the quality and strength of the GLS network. GLS has a broad and diversified customer base and is debt-free.”

Consignors need a strong and reliable partner in difficult and uncertain times. GLS meets these demands with its well-developed European network and will be well positioned after the recession ends.

 

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Quality delivered by GLS

General Logistics Systems B.V., Amsterdam (GLS), is a Pan-European company providing reliable, high-quality parcel and express services as well as value-added logistics solutions. The company offers its services through wholly owned and partner companies in 36 European states, and is globally connected via contractual agreements. The GLS system consists of 36 central transhipment points, 678 depots and 13,000 employees. Some 18,000 vehicles transport 350 million parcels annually for 228,000 customers throughout Europe. In the financial year 2008/09, GLS achieved revenues of 1.8 billion euros. GLS stands for “European Leader in Quality“. This is something that everyone working for GLS strives to achieve every day.