While lack of qualification, delays and traffic issues are still part of the logistics business in the Kingdom, the conditions in the sector have improved with Cambodia’s development, a company official said yesterday.
Stephane Guihard, business development manager of one of the leading Cambodian logistics and distribution companies, the Geolink Group, and manager of its U-Express unit, predicts a bright future for his company.
Guihard, who joined the company two years ago, moved from his job at supply chain management company SDV in France to Cambodia in 2005 in search of new challenges.
“Since then, many things got easier in the logistics sector. The roads got better, the environment is safer and corruption issues improved,” he said.
After entering the market in 1998, Geolink’s U-Express unit grew considerably. The company has one logistics hub with over 80,000 square metres, three warehouses with more than 12,000 square metres under construction, and more than 100 trucks and vans on Cambodia’s roads.
In 2012, Geolink transported about 20 million items for TotalCabodge, Jardine-Schindler, Smart mobile, Zuelling Pharma and many other brands. The company is exclusive agent of logistics group Clasquin in the Kingdom.
“This has been constantly growing, and we expect more projects to come. We recently signed an agreement to distribute mineral Water in Cambodia,” he said.
Meanwhile, even as the numbers of investors and competitors increase, “we don’t feel the concurrence. We have a good portfolio,” Guihard added.
“Our employees have a higher experience now, and it is easier to find good people, even if there’s still no training in the sector. As we also increased controls of our drivers, the number of accidents is declining,” he said, adding that robbery has not been an issue for the company since 2009.
While Guihard says he feels at ease living in Cambodia, asked about the future of his two children, he said he is “looking for what is happening in Myanmar.”
“It can become a big concurrent to Cambodia in terms of business, as there is much to develop and there are many resources.”
