As Dachser & Kolb becomes the latest FIDI Affiliate in Germany, FIDI Focus speaks to its Head of Relocation Logistics Air & Sea, Falko Loos, about how the company is adapting to challenges and taking advantage of opportunities in the country’s moving business
Germany has always had a strong moving market, with a peak in summer and peaking slightly again at the end of the year. With more people moving to furnished homes and taking only their personal items, moves are smaller today than a decade ago – but time is still of the essence.
These smaller moves present a challenge for us in terms of pricing, costs, and timeframe. People will move less and will want to spend less money on moves than previously. For this reason, modern moving companies need to have a great network for trucking – which we do in Europe, where we can use the contacts of our parent company Dachser Se. This allows us to move palletised shipments all over the continent in just a few days. The size of this network also allows us to purchase this transport at a very good price. It is reliable, transparent, and fast – all important factors nowadays.
COVID didn’t have a large impact on the market here. Many expats relocated back to Germany at the start of the pandemic, with outward moves increasing again towards the later stages. Our business experienced growth, even during the crisis.
We are moving to destinations including India, Australia and Canada, with our top routes being the US and China, both huge in size and in economy. Many German industrial companies have plants or factories in those countries, and regularly send their expats there on assignments.
A large share of our annual turnover is based on corporate businesses as well. However, the private move share is growing year on year, and we are providing more services, such as office and corporate moves, relocation services, storage, and furniture logistics.
Price innovation
After two years’ development work, we have recently launched a pricing calculator, which allows customers, corporate clients and partners to get a price for a move within Germany and into Europe. This is available on our website.
In addition, we offer direct pricing for overseas moves (air and sea freight) to and from Germany. Recently, we also began offering direct pricing, using our calculator, for smaller-size shipments within Europe. We are still developing this, adding more routes, with the eventual aim of allowing customers to book shipments directly through our website.
Why FIDI?
As the only international governing body that really ensures quality, joining FIDI was a key goal for us. We aim to provide the very best quality to our customers – so we are working with other FIDI Affiliates, too. The FAIM process itself was very smooth, and involved nice people along the way.
Membership also means we get benefits, including the FIDI Academy and payment protection. When we were confirmed as an Affiliate, we also decided to attend the 2023 FIDI Conference in Bangkok, which was absolutely the right decision. It was a brilliant event, full of great people, and we are already looking forward to next year.
We are also really looking forward to playing an active role in FIDI’s activities. After returning from the conference, I signed up to the 39 Club. This is a great opportunity to connect and work with people my age.
Looking to the future
With the changes in Germany’s moving market, the keys to success are to improvise, adapt, and overcome. Our company is evolving all the time, particularly when it comes to digitalisation.
Customers want us to provide a digital offer that involves as little effort from them as possible, while having the very best outcome in their moves. Satisfying this demand brings us a new challenge every day – but is part of our overall aim to become nothing less than the best-quality service provider for global mobility.
