Kortrijk-based forwarding company TransDirect takes care of other companies' transportationconcerns. You let them know what cargo needs to be taken where, TransDirect takes care of the rest. "That we take care of clients is our biggest asset," says manager Gilles Devriendt.

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Freight forwarding company TransDirect started up in January 2021 and is already good for about 40 full truck loads per day and a turnover of about 1.6 million euros.

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"As a job student, I worked for a transport company: first as a driver of a deliverytruck and then as a transport salesman." While working there, the young entrepreneur saw an opportunity. "Transportation for many companies is an extra burden on top of their core business. Something they would prefer not to waste time and energy on."

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TransDirect is intended to relieve companies of their transport worries. "They let us know which transports need to be carried out in the Benelux and we take care of it," says Gilles Devriendt. "We don't have any trucks ourselves, but we work together with different transport providers to fill in the transport requests. Our loads can be very diverse: from dry food and steel to packaging and cardboard. For now, we don't do refrigerated transport yet, but in the future that may change."

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The deadline is 11 a.m. to request transport for the following day. "But most of the time, our orders are known several days in advance.That also gives us the opportunity to draw the sustainable card: when we put the puzzle together, we make sure there are hardly any empty freights driving around. This is an advantage that we can offer compared to larger transportcompanies: there, things have to happen quickly. Then it happens even faster that only the outward or return freight is filled in."

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Shortage

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There is a huge labor shortage in the transportation sector. "It is one of the biggest challenges in our sector," says Devriendt. "But for now, we still manage to find solutions especially our transportation needs."

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There are several explanations for this,says Devriendt. "To begin with, we are radically against social dumping. We only work with companies that pay their people correctly and are in order with all the necessary certificates and permits.

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Of course we strive for competitive prices, but not at the expense of the people who carryout the transports. We have meanwhile built up a strong reputation in that area and that makes us an attractive company to work with."

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TransDirect also engages small independents. That also helps get all transports filled smoothly. "These are truck drivers with their own trucks that you can hire for individual jobs. They form a large part of our network of some 500carriers. Small independents are more likely to take an extra trip if they need to, because they drive for their own money, and also look at our cooperation with satisfaction."