Eyes South India to expand base; opens depots in Bangalore and Chennai
- Identifies South as a key growth market for the company
- Targets double digit growth from Southern Market within one year of start of operations
DPD Continental Pvt. Ltd. (DPD Continental), a joint venture between GeoPost, the express parcel arm of French Groupe La Poste, and Continental Air Express Pvt Ltd, an associate company of the Vohra family owned Continental Carriers Group, announced its plans to expand its operation in the Southern market. After introducing its services in New Delhi and Mumbai, the company has identified Bangalore and Chennai. As part of this expansion, DPD has opened new depots in Bangalore and Chennai, both centrally located, thus extending its services to millions of people in South India.
Headquartered in New Delhi, DPD Continental offers inbound and outbound express parcel services under the world-class brand DPD to customers in India. Shortly after launching operations in Delhi and subsequently in Mumbai, this announcement is a clear sign of the commitment with which DPD is planning to enter the Indian scene and capture some of the most critical inbound and outbound business.
With the new depots and operations in Chennai, Bangalore, DPD not only plans to provide customers a broader reach in India but also a global access. GeoPost, the express parcel arm of French Groupe La Poste, which holds the number two position in Europe, provides its European customers with deep reach into India, while Indian customers get wide accessibility through GeoPost’s network in Europe and into other important regions in the world.
Mr. Gautam Nath, CEO, DPD Continental Pvt. Ltd. said, “After the start of operations in Delhi & Mumbai early this year DPD Continental is now on the rollout of its second phase to enhance its customer support and marketing activities for its express parcel services. Starting with Bangalore and Chennai, the second phase of operations would be targeting major cities in the country. Bangalore, being termed as the IT hub of India, will provide us with a wide market to cater in the South. We believe in providing a more predictable, organized and time-definite delivery of documents and packages to our valued customers. “
Bangalore, apart from being known for its IT expertise also has a large movement of goods from the city which exports electronic hardware, engineering goods, chemicals and pharmaceuticals, fruits, vegetables, and readymade garments to the Gulf, Middle East, Africa, Europe and America. Similarly, Chennai – one of India’s largest metropolitan cities is also home to a large proportion of exports such as Textiles and Garments, Electrical and Electronic Goods, Machinery and Spares, Leather and Leather products, Pharmaceuticals, Perishables, Valuables and Mobile phones. The operations in South will provide DPD with a significant opportunity to penetrate into the Indian market while capitalizing on the burgeoning market in South India.
GeoPost, the no. 2 on the European Express Parcel market, has built a flexible global network by combining owned infrastructure in selected locations and partnerships with premium players in express parcel distribution. Mainly under the brand DPD, GeoPost operates the most homogeneous and dense road-based express parcel network in Europe and has extended its services to worldwide delivery coverage. Since the foundation of DPD Continental, DPD services are available for Indian customers between India and Europe as well as between India and other key locations worldwide.
With the intellectual, financial and organizational backing of both joint venture partners, DPD Continental Pvt. Ltd. offers value for money, reliable and efficient solutions for worldwide and domestic distribution to help customers optimize their supply chain.
About GeoPost
The GeoPost Group consolidates the Express service subsidiaries of Groupe La Poste Group, one of the world’s largest operators in the transportation and services sector and a Fortune 500 company with a history dating back more than 700 years. GeoPost is a major force in Express throughout Europe as demonstrated by its top ranking DPD road transport network. GeoPost operates in over 230 countries on behalf of over 300,000 customers worldwide and is n°1 in France and n°2 at European level on the express parcel market with a consolidated turnover figure of 3.292 billion euros in 2008.
About Continental Air Express
Continental Air Express Pvt Ltd. whose main shareholders are Mr. Vipin Vohra, Mr. Vaibhav Vohra & Mr.Viraj Vohra is an associate company of the Continental Carriers Group which is one of India’s top freight forwarders. It has been in the forefront of the courier, express & parcel segment for many decades and was India’s largest whole seller for Line haul services. In the recent past, it has also moved into the retail segment and offers many value added solutions including next day delivery in London to its customers. Continental Air Express Pvt. Ltd. is managed by a team of highly qualified professionals with many years of experience in large multinational air express companies and serves as a valuable partner in the Group’s total business solution portfolio. Continental Air Express Pvt. Ltd. is one of the oldest members of the Express Industry Council of India, which is the Apex body for the CEP (Courier Express Parcel) trade in India and operates from the exclusive express terminals in key airports.
About DPD
With 2 million parcels a day being delivered in a seamless international network, DPD is one of the leading international express and parcel service providers. DPD offers its customers a wide spectrum of domestic and international services. The product portfolio ranges from standard and express parcels to individual solutions for business customers. At more than 500 depots in above 40 countries a workforce numbering over 22.000 and 15.000 vehicles operate on behalf of 300.000 business customers. France's GeoPost Group, a wholly-owned La Poste subsidiary, is the majority shareholder in DPD.
