Portfolio changes hands
E-commerce is growing rapidly and could be worth EUR 500 billion soon. Logistics firms such as U-Freight are adapting their business to the development, and also have to invest in infrastructure. This is becoming increasingly important for financial investors.
E-commerce is one of the few sectors world wide that currently has some good news to report. The boom offers logistics companies growth opportunities, although it also requires some adjustments on their part, as Simon Wong, CEO of U-Freight, says. “Volumes in the B2C and B2B sectors are growing rapidly, it’s true, so we need to invest in our logistics centres to make sure that they can be used as e-commerce fulfilment centres”.
U-Freight relies on its initiatives
According to a forecast published by the market researcher Transport Intelligence, e-commerce activities will reach a volume of EUR 500 billion by 2024. A large proportion of this is attributable to Asia, where U-Freight, based in Hong Kong, has a particularly strong position.
The company is a logistics partner for several e-commerce platforms and is involved in the programme called ‘Fulfilment by Amazon’. Last year, U-Freight launched ‘e+Solutions’, which supports smaller enterprises with their e-commerce logistics. Wong is convinced that logistics companies need to take various initiatives to benefit from the development of e-commerce.
Blackstone acquires 22 logistics centres
While companies such as U-Freight see the growth of online commerce on a daily basis, awareness is also increasing at the meta-level. The private equity firm Blackstone recently invested GBP 120 million in purchasing 22 logistics centres in the United Kingdom.
The purchase of the properties from Clearbell Capital was explained by the fact that e-commerce is becoming ever-more important, also due to the outbreak of Covid-19. Blackstone has a EUR 8 billion portfolio of 1,300 logistics properties throughout Europe through its subsidiary Mileway.
