Editor: Why does the acquisition of the LOXX Group make sense from Rhenus' point of view?
Thilo Streck: In addition to the holding company at the headquarters in Gelsenkirchen, the acquisition also includes five operational sites located at the headquarters, in Pleidelsheim near Stuttgart and in the Polish cities of Warszawa, Poznań and Katowice. This makes the LOXX Group an ideal addition to the existing European land transport network of Rhenus Freight Road due to its strong internationalisation and the cultural diversity and competence of its employees. We would like to strategically develop this further; the fact that LOXX has developed into an international full-service provider over the past ten years supports our efforts in this direction.
Editor: LOXX is based in the heart of the Ruhr region. What role does the presence in the Rhine-Ruhr region play for the acquisition?
Thilo Streck: With the additional location in the Rhine-Ruhr region, we will further consolidate or expand our market position. We want to develop into a leading provider of general cargo transports, especially in the cross-border transport segment, in the entire Rhine-Ruhr region.
Editor: First the acquisition of Nellen&Quack in 2019, then the takeover of the transport activities of the Cretschmar Group last year - now the acquisition of LOXX. Rhenus is developing into a noticeably strong provider. How do you assess your market position compared to the competition?
Thilo Streck: More than 10 million people live in the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region - the demand for transport services is correspondingly high. The Rhenus Group is by no means leading the way here. It is true that, with the acquisitions of the last few years, we have adapted our market position to the existing needs and the demand of our customers and are thus constantly improving our range of services. The acquisition of LOXX is an important building block in this.
Editor: Let's look beyond the Rhine-Ruhr region. The LOXX Group is also represented with a location in Baden-Württemberg. From your point of view, what is the function of this location after the takeover?
Thilo Streck: With Pleidelsheim, we are returning to the important state of Baden-Württemberg with an international set-up and will be able to offer our customers solutions for cross-border transports in particular, in addition to distribution concepts for white goods and store deliveries. In this way, we are closing the gap between Dietzenbach, Nuremberg and Kirchheim.
Editor: What about the Polish locations of the group? Can you implement a comprehensive general cargo network in Poland with the existing Rhenus and the newly added LOXX locations, and if so, how?
Thilo Streck: Together with LOXX, Rhenus will transport a volume of around 500,000 consignments per year in Poland and will jointly operate 14 distribution locations in all parts of the country in the future. This will enable us to operate our own independent network in Poland, to develop further products, handling standards and information availability within it and to increase our performance.
