Walker Logistics has signed a pre-Brexit contra-deal with German fulfilment services supplier Limal for their respective clients to store goods in each other’s depots.
The arrangement means the UK companies that export to Germany and other European markets will be able to hold ambient stock closer to the point of consumption.
German companies will benefit from Walker’s 230,000 sq ft ambient and chilled facilities in the UK.
Limal will be able to use Walker’s multi-user storage facilities at Lambourn Woodlands, in Berkshire, as the hub from where goods for the UK market can be stored and dispatched.
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Walker has integrated its order processing systems with Limal’s but clients will continue to deal directly with their usual contacts at each business.
Limal is based in Neumünster - 40 miles north of Hamburg - and serves more than 100 clients, dispatching 10,000 parcels a day from four sites.
William Walker, sales and marketing director of Walker Logistics, said the company’s relationship with Limal gives UK-based customers that export to Germany and other European markets, and vice versa, the opportunity to optimise their supply chain efficiency and minimise overheads by holding stock closer to the point of consumption.
Both companies would be “immensely helpful” to those clients that were striving to put post-Brexit contingency plans in place, with confusion still surrounding the movement of goods between the UK and Europe and talk of blockages and delays at ports.
“But, this isn’t all about Brexit. We see our relationship with Limal as a long-term partnership that enables us to offer a valuable additional service to our clients,” Walker said.
Limal managing director Madsen Schulte-Tigges added: “We believe that Limal and Walker are a good fit, both operationally and culturally - and we see the relationship between our two companies as one that will bring tremendous benefits to our respective clients.”
A spokesman for Walker denied the partnership was a precursor to a possible merger.
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