SACO Belgium’s history in freight forwarding goes back to 1991, when Groupair was founded at Schiphol Airport. Through hard work, great passion for the business, and a keen eye for new opportunities and solutions, Groupair evolved rapidly and became a very successful pioneer in neutral freight forwarding.
In 1997, Groupair had its European expansion with an office in Brussels airport, the capital of Europe. The strategic position of the locations, close to Europe’s largest seaports Antwerp and Rotterdam, made Groupair an important transportation hub centrally situated in Western Europe, where supplies of goods from all over the world are gathered together before being sent on again. The innovative logistics development, favourable customs regulations and screening procedures make the region particularly appealing as a base for many European distribution centres.
In 2013, Groupair became part of SACO Shipping and continued airfreight activities under the flag of SACO Groupair. They became stronger and better equipped to create competitive neutral airfreight solutions without losing the so-valued flexibility and customer centricity of the smaller and midsize forwarder.
Their own warehouses, with modern Safety and Security facilities, combined with road feeder services out of any origin in Europe, enables them to provide customized and personalized neutral airfreight services from any point in Europe to worldwide destinations. They enable small and midsize forwarders to create a virtual one-stop shop with their experience and creativity as a neutral airfreight partner.
In cooperation with their neutral partners from the ACG network, they provide the most efficient and optimized services under the guarantee of strict neutrality at both ends. Their multiple weekly-consolidated airfreight services into several worldwide destinations are palletized, enabling delivery of cargo many hours faster and at substantially less costs. Aside from their consolidation services, they can also take care of your back-to-back shipments to worldwide destinations, DAP/DDP/PP or CC. They are registered as a regulated agent in the EU database and IATA, IATA-DG and AEO-F licensed.
Why SACO Belgium?
- They handle all types of cargo. Project, outsized, DG, temperature controlled, etc… Their warehouse is equipped with cold storage areas and they have trained employees to handle DG shipments. With their big forklift 16T, they can safely handle heavy loads or big outsized pallets/crates. Their warehouse is 4000 sqm (bonded) and they have 12 gates. One gate is equipped with a roller bed system to handle BUP’s.
- They are IATA and Regulated Agent.
- They have set up SACO CUSTOMS, who will step into the EU market as a neutral customs broker.
- They offer services to freight forwarders only. For some customers, they are their cargo handler, so they provide the “ground” services such as warehousing and airline delivery or collection. For others, they provide the whole range of services; warehouse handling, airline delivery or collecting, customs broker, airfreight booking and handling, consolidation services, etc…
- Their main imports are Asia and US/Latam and main exports are Asia, Africa, and the US.
- Together with their AMS office, they established a EUROPEAN CONSOL PRODUCT that covers the whole of Europe except Germany. Most important destinations BUE, EZE and JNB. More destinations are coming soon.
- Being a 100% neutral partner, they can reach out to all freight forwarders. Some use them for ad hoc requests, others use them as their dedicated partner at Brussels Airport. They offer a “platform” that is available to partners without them having to invest in offices, warehouses, and equipment.
Thank you to Wim Sterckx – Managing Director for sharing some insightful information about their team.
