Maxi-Cosi: ”At Van Duuren they do what they promise”
“Safety and quality are of paramount importance to us. This is not only of vital importance for the children who sit in our car seats and buggies, but also for us as a company,” says Michel Clabbers, final logistics manager at Dorel, which in addition to the Maxi-Cosi also designs and supplies well-known brands of buggies such as the Quinny. “We also expect our carrier to be reliable. And expertise, because the Scandinavian countries are tricky.”
Van Duuren drives northwards on a weekly basis for Dorel. Team leader Cor van Knippenberg: “Norway is not a member of the EU, so the customs conditions are tricky and hauliers also have to take into account any ferry times.” Also, the Scandinavian countries are sparsely populated, Clabbers notes. “In Finland the world ends two kilometres outside Helsinki. From Van Duuren, on the other hand, we do expect them to deliver everywhere for us.”
Dorel often supplies goods via importers, but would like to supply more chairs and trolleys directly to retailers. Van Duuren Districenters helped to make that wish a reality. Ed Kooiman, European Groupage Manager at Van Duuren, says: “From discussions between Cor, Michel and our management it emerged that, as well as pallet transport, Van Duuren could also play a role in the parcel flow. It turned out to be a good idea for us to deliver the parcels to the transhipment depots of the various parcel services in Scandinavia. The parcel service then delivers the order to the shops in the country.” The benefits for Dorel are many. Because Van Duuren delivers the parcels directly to the right transhipment depot, there are fewer transhipments than if the parcel service had to do this itself. The number of trucks in front of Dorel’s door is also reduced. Kooiman: “We take the parcel loads with us in the same trucks that are used for pallet transport.
Van Knippenberg emphasised the good atmosphere during the negotiations. “No aggressive selling, but just enthusiasm to get together and think about the possibilities that are available.” Michel Clabbers: “It is nevertheless telling that, although they are not obliged to, all our Scandinavian customers have switched to Van Duuren? Hardly anyone thought that the old transporter had better conditions.”