For Menlo Logistics, the US$1.5 billion global logistics and supply chain management subsidiary of Con-way, 2014 has been extremely positive and have had significant growth in the South Asia region through the year. The company is now targeting to increase its presence in Thailand and Malaysia, and adding to its portfolio supply chain services for two major new industries as key opportunities for 2015. Regional capacity, service investments coupled with branding initiatives and accelerated market recognition have been reasons for Menlo Logistics robust performance in 2014.
“2014 has been an excellent year for Menlo in South Asia, where in the third quarter we experienced over 10 percent year-over-year growth,” said Robert Bassett, Menlo’s vice president of marketing and sales. “We’ve added 27 new projects so far this year and expanded our client base significantly, positioning us for a good start in 2015,” Bassett added.
Also supporting the company’s growth objectives is a branding initiative designed to better present Menlo’s capabilities and value to the market. Under this initiative, which followed nearly a year of research, the company in September globally refined its brand as Menlo Logistics, launched a new stand-alone website (www.menlologistics.com) and adopted a new brand tag line, “Customer Innovation,” which research showed more accurately represented the value attribute ranked most highly and often by Menlo’s customers.
Singapore’s emergence as a regional logistics hub continues to provide the foundation for Menlo’s growth in South Asia. “Singapore has established itself as a strong regional hub as it is a time-tested and reliable center of gravity for regional commerce,” said Desmond Chan, Menlo’s Singapore-based managing director in South Asia.” Chan added that the continued development of Singapore’s world-class port facilities and the shift of the existing port terminals to Tuas have the potential to generate even greater efficiencies for freight transiting Singapore and the region.
“Generally, all countries in ASEAN and India show promising signs of growth,” said Chan. Menlo currently have operations in five countries — Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, India and Australia. “We also focus on specialized services for key industries, which presently include automotive, high-tech, aerospace, consumer and industrial, and wine and spirits. In 2015 we will be expanding these capabilities into logistics solutions for health care and oil and gas development, as well as additional support for automotive and industrial customers in India and Thailand,” said Chan.