 Express Kargo Forwarder Pvt. Ltd was established in 1977 by 6 families, all with backgrounds in the maritime industry. Currently the company employs 40 staff working on air, sea, customs clearance, domestic, DGR, specialized product handling like live animals, consulate-diplomatic Cargo, aircraft parts clearance, etc.
On January 26th, 2008, Ms. Chaitaly Mehta-Commercial Director of the company, spent several hours sitting with us to explain how Indian forwarders do business. Surprisingly, she arrived at precisely the time we had arranged earlier. Based on my experience from meetings with other local forwarders, I usually had to wait for at least half an hour. Her company is located close to the Airport, about an hour drive to the Colaba area where we met. It's quite far.
She told me it's very common that people are late in Mumbai; the traffic is very bad. Of course, some people are not being honest; it's always a good excuse for being late. But it was very obvious to me that she was not that kind of person. I began by asking her opinion on the two companies I visited just several days before. She knew them all very well and even the owners. The situation is almost always the same; that people from the forwarding business are all well connected. She also informed me that Indian freight forwarders (at least in Mumbai) are willing to purchase their own property instead of renting, unlike their Chinese counterparts. The real estate market has been booming for years, and owning office space has become a vital factor in promoting the reputation of a forwarding business. One example I found out about from the Chinese consul is that they rent a two-bedroom apartment (60m2) in downtown Mumbai for USD 1,200 a month. This price is even higher than those in Shanghai. I'm not an economist, so I can't give a full explanation as to why the housing prices are so high that even western people find them difficult to afford. But if you look around, you will realize that local people are working and living in the buildings built by the British a hundred years ago. There are fewer new construction projects in Mumbai than in cities like Beijing or Shanghai. This may be the reason that property prices have been continuously increasing for years.
Therefore, I would like JCtrans' members to take note: don't judge an Indian forwarder only by office space. My advice is to ask if they own the property, if they don't ask how long they have been working at their current location. It's never been a mistake to ask people from the industry how long they have been doing business, how well they are doing, and if they have a good reputation.
One impressive thing about the company is that the management insists on prompt communication and a short period for remittances. Ms. Mehta emphasizes that the company is above the industry standard on these two issues. Currently the company successfully contracted one of our members in Australia as a non-exclusive agent, and we are very happy to see members developing their businesses and gaining more opportunities through our platform and services.
The company also owns licenses for break bulk and customs brokerage. Express Kargo is also one of the few active players in the Indian market with the capability and certification to handle hazardous cargo by air and sea, and live animals by air. All the services provided are under one name.
(Richard Zhang from Mumbai India) |
