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A range of the transport sector’s leading operators have given an optimistic trading forecast for the rest of 2021 and beyond, with many continuing to report soaring volumes.

Quizzed in MT's latest industry panel discussion, the majority said they had largely shrugged off the impact of Brexit while profiting from new consumer buying patterns triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic.

ArrowXL chief executive Charlie Shiels said the delivery specialist was “flying along”.

“Volumes remain incredibly high and we continue with this ongoing peak period,” he said. “We remain massively confident about our future, accepting the inevitable Covid correction at some point. Inevitably as ‘non-food’ shops fully re-open it will impact all home delivery sectors – by varying degrees. But the fact is we now have more consumers almost forced into trying home delivery who trust and have confidence in how we work. So a volume correction is inevitable, but the Covid volume exit point will be significantly above the entry point.”

Shiels said current trading volumes are up 30% year on year as ArrowXL heads into the very busy spring/summer peak.

“Some of our clients’ product supply remains unreliable, because of the container crisis,” he said, “but we offer the flexibility to adapt as volume varies. Our current trading volumes are a mix of historical clients trading well and 50-plus newly acquired clients. Busy sectors include homeware, fitness, white goods and garden.

“Our colleagues, front line and back office, are working incredibly hard and continue to amaze me very day. We remain in great shape.”

Europa

Europa sales and branch network director Dionne Redpath said: “Business is great at the moment, which is surprising given the turbulence of the first two months of the year. The opportunities we have within the Road sector are significant.

“Our Europa Flow product is now well established and new customers really feel the benefit of being able to ship on Delivered Duty Paid (DDP) terms with zero-rated VAT and a simple, smooth flow. We’re onboarding approximately 30 new DDP clients a week which is significant and, more importantly, the work we put into introducing, educating and implementing is resulting in very quick onboarding processes. We can take a client from introduction to onboard in as little as a week.”

Redpath said Euopa was “extremely optimistic” for the year ahead.

“Indicators of growth are very good,” she said. “Morale is high, reflected by customer confidence. Our team feels that the hard work is now paying dividends and we have a new, solid foundation from which growth can and is springing.

“The value that Europa Flow has delivered into the marketplace is significant – not only have we created a thus far unrivalled product, but we’re making customers’ lives simpler and more cost effective which surely must safeguard UK-EU trade and help keep UK exporting businesses competitive against an otherwise backdrop of gloom. Europa Road is a happy place!”

XPO

Dan Myers, XPO MD UK and Ireland, also said he was optimistic for the year ahead: “Brexit has added complication and volumes have been down on our EU-UK flows, but we are seeing this return,” he said. “Other parts of our business are flying such as our two-man home delivery activity. Overall I am very optimistic about the next two months and confident about the outlook for the business. We have a great team and an offer which differentiates XPO which is something which customers really value.”

Meachers Global Logistics

Bob Terris, chairman of Meachers Global Logistics, said it had been “a very interesting year so far”.

“We walked away from a £3m per year contract due to lack of margin, gained new business related to the health industry and completed the purchase of another company in the first three months,” he explained.

“We expect our cruise related activities to pick up gradually during the second half of the year. We will have a big change of mix over the year which will present some challenges but we are optimistic nevertheless. We will have further complications on the shipping side of the business as the Brexit regulations start to escalate but this will also provide opportunities with existing and new clients.”

Wincanton

Wincanton chief executive James Wroath said the group had continued to perform strongly in the fourth quarter and underlying revenue, excluding disposed businesses, is expected to be around 15% ahead of the prior year, with growth in all four sectors.

Digital and e-fulfilment is again set to deliver year-on-year growth of around 40% in the period. In addition to the high volumes in its existing e-commerce activities, the sector has been bolstered by the start-up of new business for Dobbies and Dwell and the commencement of operations at Wincanton’s west London Customer Fulfilment Centre (CFC) for Waitrose.

Performance in grocery and consumer remained strong and is expected to grow by around 3%.

Wincanton will also be leasing a state-of-the-art, automated e-fulfilment facility in Rockingham, Northamptonshire, as part of its ongoing strategy to extend its e-commerce proposition, creating additional capacity to drive expansion.

“Wincanton has delivered another strong performance, maintaining our positive momentum throughout the final quarter of the year,” Wroath said. “Our people have met the challenges associated with operating in another lockdown and it is very satisfying to see all four parts of the business in growth and contributing positively to the group.

“We are also delighted to have expanded our e-fulfilment capabilities and capacity further with our new site in Rockingham. This serves as a marker of our ambitions to capitalise on the growth opportunities presented by the increasing prominence of online retail.”

Culina

Culina Group chief executive Thomas van Mourik said: “Despite the challenges that we face with the Covid-19 pandemic, Culina Group continues to perform well with continuing growth, investment in infrastructure expansion, acquisition and new customers joining us.

“We really are a business that is all about its people and I’m proud to say that we are where we are today because of the people we employ across our network.

“We are looking forward to the year ahead as we continue to provide excellent levels of service to all of our clients.”

Cullimore

Cullimore MD Moreton Cullimore said the company "continued to feel the energy of our markets taking positive steps forward".

“Unfortunately we are not part of any pallet network so are not enjoying the unprecedented work/growth levels that they are enjoying at the moment," he admitted. “But hopefully with lockdown nearing an end we will see events work which we were involved in begin to rekindle and come back online. Aggregates and concrete work continues to enjoy an uptick which we would seasonally expect anyway this time of year - in normal trading.

“I suppose the big question will be in September when furlough comes to an end and what happens in reaction to that with the economy. Hopefully we will continue to see positive business throughout the year. At the moment we see nothing in front of us which provides warning signs so hopefully all positive.

“That said, after the last year and the playing field changing on a weekly, and sometimes daily, basis I don’t want to take anything for granted right now.”