When the anti-corona measures were first announced, John Opstal was concerned. He’s from the Dutch trucking company, Gebr. Opstal Transport. “We’ve not been in business for four years yet. You, therefore, hope you don’t encounter stormy weather. Things still continued relatively well in the first week after France went into lockdown,” John says.
“But, in the second week, all trade stopped. Occupancy went from 100 to 20%. We’ve been transporting a lot of potatoes to France since the beginning of the year. That didn’t stop entirely. Fortunately, things starting picking up in the third week after the rules were implemented. Now, there’s as much as 20 to 30% more volume than last year.”
“During those first few weeks, there were a lot of discussions with our clients and colleagues. We try to distribute the paints among cars in the most productive way possible. We didn’t have any mischief without delay. We try to separate everything else and focus on what we do well: group shipments to France,” says John.
“We travel to France every day with our normal service. There, Rungis’ foreign wholesale market is the main destination. That’s why we were able to welcome new customers, including the crown crisis. We were a little hesitant to continue the project. expansion of our fleet. Fortunately, we did it because now we want that extra capacity.”
New locationLast week, things were also clarified regarding Gebr. Opstal Transport’s new location. “We knew our current premises’ rental period was coming to an end. We were considering all kinds of options. But, we realized we would prefer to stay here in Bleiswijk. After all, we get quite a lot of work from neighboring companies. We also make daily trips between Bleiswijk and Westland and Barendrecht. We weren’t considering constructing a new building either,” explains Opstel.
“We had to keep the recent years’ growth in mind. We had had to expand considerably right away. Luckily, Houweling, a horticultural supplier, has a site with six cooling cells available. It has space for 350 pallets and enough loading docks. So, we’ve been given many more possibilities when it comes to storing our clients’ products at the correct temperatures. After all, we currently only have a single cell for 80 pallets. That’s been chock-a-block in recent weeks.”
“Now we have ten trucks on the road. I would have no idea it was imaginable a few years ago. At that moment, my brothers and I started with a truck, almost like a joke. But many other people see us on the way, everyone who is helping to recognize the call and creates the obligatory interest,” Says John.
“Therefore, I hope that we can further increase our market percentage. But not really at the expense of everything else. We will not compete for the lowest value. I wouldn’t think if we kept running on ten trucks. Array If we had to load ten more trucks, that would be smart too. But value and quality will have to be balanced at all times.”
John believes that getting the right drivers is the biggest challenge in the long run. “In this sense, the crisis of the crown has been useful. Some drivers from other sectors have reached the market. But in the long run, driver shortages will remain a challenge. After all, you want other people to be willing to give 120%. They also want to perceive that driving also means paintings on weekends. It’s positive about the long term of your business.” This crisis has taught me that infrequently we can put too much pressure on ourselves. The demand for completion and vegetables remains, even in times of crisis,” John adds.
Perfection Fruits On March 1, this carrier and his wife founded the local delivery service Perfection Fruits. “We came here with the concept because we have to recover our customers’ products anyway. And we have a cooling space. We make deliveries with one of the shipping company’s vans. So one plus one is equivalent to three. It’s a success, especially when the crisis crown has just begun. Suddenly we won a lot of orders. Things have calmed down a lot since then, however, it doesn’t matter. We see it as an advantage. Our main business is shipping,” Concludes John.
For information: John OpstalGebr. Opstal Transport121 Klappolder2665 LP, Bleiswijk, NLTél: ’31 (0) 103330228 Email: [email protected] Website: www.gebr-opstaltransporten.nl
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