With Frederick Van Glabeke from Tessutica, we talked about how interpersonal relationships, proactivity, accountability, and a lot of persistent work help overcome supply chain challenges during Brexit.
Frederick Van Glabeke has worked in Tessutica – a part of Beaulieu International Group, a textile manufacturing company – since 1998. Over the years he has seen many changes in the company and its environment. He understands well the influence that his business partners and their relations with representatives on the company’s operations, especially when it comes to operating in challenging circumstances. “Only when working with Ziegler do I always have a sense of total commitment – the feeling that they care,” he says.
Five years ago, his company moved production from Belgium to Romania. It was then that the decision was made to look for cheaper supply chain cooperation options. Cooperation with other companies was established, but after many failures, the decision was made to again resume working with Ziegler.
“We returned to Ziegler because we needed a partner who knows what they are doing!’ Frederick recalls.
“When working with Ziegler, things always just go smoothly. The contact you have with the company is also invaluable. You always know who you are talking to and you feel taken care of. Ziegler is a large group with operations all over the world and yet you never feel anonymous in your contact, there is that «small company» touch, a personal approach, and a committed person on the other end. Plus operational excellence – service, quick responses, problem-solving, and finding solutions together,” he says.
Tessutica works mainly with the United Kingdom. It is their largest market. So the start of 2021 was a particularly stressful time for them. The uncertainty and formal complexities that Brexit brought with it were a significant challenge. Ziegler’s experts helped the company manage the process as smoothly as possible.
“Across the Beaulieu International Group, we continue to work with other companies on supply chain services. And at the end of the last year and the beginning of this year, in the context of Brexit, we all noticed obvious differences in Ziegler’s approach and capabilities compared to other companies. Only in the departments that were working with Ziegler was everything running smoothly – applications, stocking, customs, delivery…We were in awe, so noticeable was the difference,” Frederick claims.
“Even if there are some stumbles, marginal though they may be, Ziegler always rises to the challenge and never shirks responsibility. We always find a way through every situation together. It is a matter of trust, and this is something we have in Ziegler,” he adds.
The Chinese New Year – and the Year of the Ox – is just around the corner.
It is the most significant and the longest holiday in China celebrated also in a large part of Asia, what people celebrate the beginning of the new year with their families.
This new year will start the year of the Ox, which is a valued animal in Chinese culture. It stands for confidence, dependability, strength, and determination.
This year Chinese New Year 2021 falls on Friday, February 12th, 2021, and celebrations culminate with the Lantern Festival on February 26th, 2021. Celebrations last up to 16 days, and the first 7 days are considered a public holiday (February 11th–17th, 2021).
This national public holiday has consequences on global supply chains. For 2 weeks, the various European and Chinese ports will be impacted by a large influx of goods. Due to the festival, there will be a closing period for manufacturing industries. The Ziegler offices in China will be closed for the Chinese New Year holiday from 11.02 till and included 17.02.2021 (Hong Kong from 12.02 till 15.02), therefore, there will be no shipments from China for at least a week.
Nevertheless, we hope and will make every effort, that the celebration of this important holiday in Chinese tradition will not affect the smoothness of our operations and service to our customers.
On behalf of Ziegler, we wish you all a lot of health, strength, success, and a peaceful Year of the Ox.
The Special Request by Ziegler service officially premiered on January 14, 2021.
Special Request by Ziegler is a premium service offered by Ziegler Group, that mobilises a team of experts across varied fields of transport and logistics for your specific transport requirements. These highly specialised professionals are available on various communication channels 24 hours a day, seven days a week to respond immediately with personalised service to our customers’ every need.
We understand that clients entrust Special Request’s experts with their most valuable goods. This is why the core values of Special Request by Ziegler are confidentiality, discretion, superior quality, and security.
Each Special Request by Ziegler order is approached individually. We look after each order based on the customer’s overriding needs related to the goods and services. The whole process is organised so that the client can be completely hands-off, knowing that their needs are being taken care off. We offer a comprehensive service, the components of which we select individually for the given situation, goods, and customer needs. This is possible thanks to the combination of Ziegler’s more than 100 years of experience, and a team working together in a complementary and flexible startup style.
Visit our website and find out how you can benefit from the Special Request by Ziegler offer.
In the Ziegler Group, we pay great attention to effective quality management and clear ethical standards, which are actively supported by all our teams. Respect for ethical principles and the values associated with them is the best guarantee that our company will continue to a place of positive development into the future for us all.
This is why we have introduced the Code of Ethics, designed with respect for the diversity of cultures represented within our Group, which will apply to our entire Group throughout the world.
Respecting the principles set out by this policy is a priority for us all and the responsibility of every Ziegler Group employee.
See Ziegler Group’s Code of Ethics.
Anyone who deals significantly in trade between the UK and the EU has been waiting for the beginning of 2021 apprehensively. The transition period for the UK’s participation in the European Union Customs Union and European Single Market ended on December 31, 2020, creating a new European reality. A reality made all the more problematic as it is fraught with insecurity and many question marks.
Until today, only some of the conditions for cooperation between the European Union countries and the United Kingdom have been definitively established, and there is still uncertainty about all applicable regulations or documents concerning imports and exports. The situation is changing very dynamically. Every day new agreements between the countries of the EU and the UK are being signed, and new regulations and rules are being introduced.
Trade, transport, logistics, customs, and tax management under these conditions is a great challenge. At Ziegler Group we have been working continuously for many weeks on solutions to enable the smooth flow of our customers’ goods between the UK and EU countries. Ziegler’s logistics expert groups in France, Belgium, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and other European countries work continuously to analyze changing regulations and to exchange knowledge and experience. These multinational team efforts help us to analyze regulations from different sources, compare agreements, and develop a coherent system of document circulation and procedures. Although with such a rapidly changing situation, it is difficult to establish procedures of any kind.
That is why we have appreciated our business flexibility and ability to adapt dynamically to new situations. We would like to assure you that within Ziegler Group we are doing our utmost to keep our knowledge of the regulations and required procedures related to import and export to the UK up-to-date, and are continuously adapting our solutions to match current regulations to provide you with efficient and effective services.
We are aware that there are still many efforts, challenges, and work to do ahead of us in this area. However, with our multinational teams working together to adapt and deliver the best possible solutions, we are confident we can help you navigate all your import/export needs between the UK and the EU in 2021. If you wish to consult us on anything relating to transport to or from the UK, please contact our experts at our European branches.
Belgium brexit_BE@zieglergroup.com
France brexit_FR@zieglergroup.com
Germany brexit.DE@zieglergroup.com
The Netherlands brexit_NL@zieglergroup.com
UK:
Durham Brexit_UK_Durham@zieglergroup.com
Gateway Brexit_UK_LondonGateway@zieglergroup.com
Bradford Brexit_UK_Bradford@zieglergroup.com
Warrington Brexit_UK_Warrington@zieglergroup.com
Tamworth Brexit_UK_Tamworth@zieglergroup.com
Northampton Brexit_UK_Northampton@zieglergroup.com
Newport Brexit_UK_Newport@zieglergroup.com
Peterborough Brexit_UK_Peterborough@zieglergroup.com
Portsmouth Brexit_UK_Portsmouth@zieglergroup.com
Please also visit our website where we share our current knowledge related to Brexit.
In English https://www.zieglergroup.com/brexit/
In French https://www.zieglergroup.com/brexit-fr/
In Dutch https://www.zieglergroup.com/brexit-nl/
In German https://www.zieglergroup.com/brexit-de/
We are grateful for your trust and understanding and believe that by continuing to work hand-in-hand on this topic we can work out optimal solutions.
Launch of a new premium service
« Special Request »
Dear valued customer,
Today is a special day, we prepare for the launch of our new service « Special Request ».
As its name suggests, « Special Request » envisions a new era of transport services by taking care of customers’ special needs and providing premium services.
Discover a teaser of the new service launch
« Special Request »
Stay connected, our exclusive services are looking forward to impressing you in January 2021.
Special edition of the magazine on how the Ziegler Group is adapting to offer new digital solutions to customers and support their business even better through innovative products.
The Covid-19 pandemic has hit many industries and companies hard and painfully. It has brought anxiety to our professional and personal spheres. However, like any crisis, it also offers important lessons for us to learn and opportunities to take advantage. For the Ziegler Group, it was an excellent opportunity to accelerate our digital transformation and adjust our roadmap to support our customers and partners better in this changing environment.
For most other freight forwarders, increasing efficiency and productivity is the main goal of their digital transition. However, our primary focus in this process is customer-centric. We strongly believe that the development of our digital capabilities must contribute to making our customers successful.
We are happy to release this special edition of the Ziegler Group magazine, fully dedicated to the theme of the ongoing digital transformation that is occurring within our organization. We still have significant changes ahead of us. As we modernize our operating practices, we are looking to also raise the bar for the rest of our industry.
Our Christmas schedule for road transport EUROPE 2020/2021
December is often the time for summaries. As the year draws to an end, we are tempted to reflect and recapitulate. This year it has so much meaning because the year was so unprecedented. Unexpected, but also bringing new possibilities; challenging, but proving our strength; unpredictable, but allowing us to emphasize our flexibility.
Today, as 2020 draws to a close, and we reflect on all the wonderful work we have done, we wish to thank all Ziegler employees and associates. We are grateful for the enormous commitment, positive attitude, and ways in which we together proved we could change and adapt to every new situation. These attributes of our company are of priceless value.
Our knowledge and experience were used to help fight the pandemic. We delivered millions of face masks and other medical supplies to hospitals, pharmacies, and enterprises. We leveraged our rail freight capability to mitigate air freight and ocean freight capacity shortage.
In this hard time, we did not stop in our efforts to further develop. In May we moved into a new headquarters in the UK, and a month later we strengthened our position at Liège Airport (LGG) by acquiring Transports Rademaker with an excellent location in Grâce Hollogne at the end of the Liège Airport runway. Then, in October, we moved to new facilities at the Brussels airport.
This year, we also took great steps towards the digitization and further expansion of the Ziegler Group through the creation of the new ZieglerLabs in Poland – the center of excellence for digitalization and innovation.
There are no words to express our gratitude to our customers and partners, who have been standing by us through the year, working hard and looking for the best solutions side-by-side. You have made it possible for us to give as much of ourselves as possible, you have not lost your confidence and kept a positive mindset with us. This is our united success!
2021 will be a year of further interesting developments for the Ziegler Group, which we look forward to with excitement.
Meanwhile, for the upcoming festive season, we wish you a lot of peace and rest. May this time allow you to break away from the daily chase, and may it be full of joy and time spent with your loved ones. And let the New Year bring only good news!
Alain Ziegler Diane Govaerts
President Chief Executive Officer