iContainers Expands Presence to Rotterdam

With the opening of an office in Europe’s #1 logistics hub, iContainers reaches a key milestone on its path to become a global leader in the freight industry.

iContainers, the first 100% online global freight forwarder, has opened a new branch in the Port of Rotterdam - the Spanish company’s fourth global establishment. This strategic location gives it access to Europe’s top shipping hub, and one of the most important worldwide.

In only two years, iContainers has achieved strong global strategic expansions with offices in Florida (US) and Ahmedabad (India), and its headquarters in Barcelona (Spain). The establishment of the new office in Rotterdam is a crucial part of the company’s three-year expansion plan in which it aims to strengthen its grip on the ocean freight market by placing itself in main strategic logistics hubs all over the world.

“As an online company, iContainers was able to convert, in a short time and with much success, a previously-lengthy service to what is now the new and fast norm in acquiring logistics services. As such, having a presence at key locations in the maritime world is vital as it provides for easy facilitation. It also allows us to focus more on commercial strategies and develop services such as door-to-door, which requires the coordination of various agents that form the transport chain,” said Jaime Jiménez, CEO of iContainers.

iContainers currently offers door-to-door services for US-Spain, US-Taiwan, US-Shanghai, US-Netherlands, US-Emirates, Spain-Taiwan, Spain-Netherlands, Spain-Emirates and Spain-Shanghai shipments, which represent nearly 30% of the company’s annual turnover.

The Rotterdam office will provide the company access to one of the most important shipping markets in the world. Already, iContainers is offering 25% more routes since the launch of the new office.

As the largest and busiest port in Europe and the sixth-most active port in the world, Rotterdam Port handled over 12 million TEUs and 466 million tons of goods in 2015. This represented a 4.9% increase from the previous year. The port is further strengthened by its strategic location in the Rhine Meuse delta, which provides it quick access to the heart of Europe. In recent years, the port has also taken to developing and expanding its railway infrastructure in order to further expand its logistics influence into central Europe. This will give it a competitive boost ahead of neighboring ports in Antwerp and Hamburg.

To date, iContainers has assisted nearly 5,000 satisfied customers with their maritime shipments through half a million trade routes connected to over 1,000 destinations worldwide. It’s recorded a 100% increase in activity year-on-year. It currently employs over 60 staff in its offices in Spain, the US, India and the Netherlands.