Expolanka eyeing M and A to grow
Expolanka Holdings PLC flying high with recent growth in their core logistics business under the flagship EFL brand is eyeing its next stage of growth with mergers and acquisitions (M and A).
Hanif Yusoof, Group CEO Expolanka Holdings in an interview with the Business Times on Thursday explained the group on the back of acquiring warehouse companies, will progressively engage in the M and A path to grow the logistics business.
EFL Global LLC – USA, a fully owned subsidiary of Sri Lanka’s Expolanka Holdings PLC acquired three US logistics companies – Seville Container Freight Station, Inc., Seville Freight Systems Inc., and Seville Transfer Ltd. – for US$ 2.2 million to expand its logistics operations based out of New York’s John F. Kennedy (JFK) International Airport.
They are looking at buying global logistics companies, Mr. Yusoof said.
Now they are at the stage of identifying such global companies. Seville is a bonded container freight station (CFS) and a bonded trucking company located in the strategically important John F. Kennedy Airport in the US. Noting that the logistics business is a game changer for the group, Mr. Hanif said the aim is to be fundamentally a strong company and robust logistics player in this region.
He attributed the recent growth in Expolanka to their logistics businesses being in the right manufacturing locations, their robust marketing team in the US and other locations, and the ‘agile’ leadership that rose to the occasion when the pandemic happened. “EFL continued servicing surging demand for emergency supplies such as Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). Many businesses wanted to find logistics partners who were on the ball. We mobilised a lot of charter flights to move out (stuff)etc,” he said noting that the procurement plan they were working on for the past three years paid off during this time.
Is this business sustainable? “My answer is, I don’t know but the trend seems to be continuing with Europe going into lockdown. Also the seamless flow of information is equally important and our digitisation efforts paid off with our on-time information being intact. So, I feel that this momentum will continue with the current inventory issues.”
He added that renewed focus on EFL’s tech capabilities, namely its ERP platform and automation initiatives, drove further efficiencies.