Philippe Higelin, president of the Redpsher Group – One of the biggest challenges for the premium transport market in Serbia is customs and borders

Redspher is a company that has been in Europe and other parts of the world for more than four decades and specializes in urgent deliveries, adapted to the different requirements and needs of clients. Part of the Redspher company is Flash, which provides a premium transport service in Serbia, i.e. it deals with critical deliveries and deliveries on demand. It is a company that provides logistics services that are not standard, but tailored to the needs of clients in detail, characterized by speed of delivery, very efficient implementation.

Flash, as well as partners, suppliers and customers in Serbia, was recently visited by Philippe Higelin, the president of the Redspher Group, who has been with this company and this transport sector for more than 20 years. When asked what impression, after visiting the partners and clients with whom Redsper cooperates in Serbia, he has in this sector of logistics and transport, Philippe Higelin points out that what he can notice is that Serbia, economically speaking, is the future of Europe.

– After visiting our clients, I noticed how important this type of service is in this market as well, management of on-demand deliveries, urgent and complex deliveries. It is becoming an increasingly important topic. Previously, there was one transport company that dealt with everything, and now clients expect more specific solutions according to their needs. And the market in Serbia, according to my experience, is part of that momentum. I also went to North America, to the eastern part of Europe (such as Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia) and I can recognize it. But that's not enough because our customers today are looking for and demanding something more - what we bring. That is why we are a partner in Serbia with Nebojša Mandić. He has experience in logistics in Serbia, we have experience in this market in Europe and North Africa, and if we combine our experiences, we will be able to improve this type of service in Serbia, that is, in Southeast Europe, in the Balkans.

eKapija: What are the biggest challenges facing this transport sector in Serbia at the moment?

– I am not a specialist in all types of transport, I know the market in which we operate, our niche. I can't give lessons to big companies. But what I see here, perhaps as one of the biggest challenges, is customs and borders, because we are dealing with critical deliveries, where you can't wait. Twenty-four hours in our business is a long, long time. That is the biggest challenge in my opinion.

Another challenge is to bring our services closer, promote them, point out their advantages to clients and industries that are not yet aware of it. To present them the values of our business. What are the reasons why our type of shipping is more expensive than regular shipping.

eKapija: What do you see as the potential for further development of this transport niche in Serbia?

– The potential will be your economic development, if production does not develop and grow, the transport sector will not develop or grow. Because, it is clear, we transport goods, products, and not, for example, passengers. When I came, by coincidence, there was a German delegation in Serbia, as well as Stellantis's, and that is certainly a sign. I truly believe that the eastern part of Europe is the future of this continent, and Serbia is part of it. I am absolutely convinced that the development will be in this region of Europe, not so much in France or Portugal, for example, as here. That's why we invest in this part of Europe, here, in Poland, Romania, the Czech Republic...

eKapija: Some articles describe you as someone who had a good feeling 20 years ago that the company had huge potential. How did you see that potential?

– I am not a visionary. I just try to be close to our clients, users of our services, seeing what they do, what they expect, what their plans are. Logistics is becoming more and more stressful, more and more global, so we try to be close to them to support them in whatever way we can. We saw potential in that, not on the market, but on the side of our clients. I always say, to be a champion, pick one champion and just follow them. It is figuratively the philosophy of the Tour de France, a tactic in cycling. Follow the champion, what he does, do your best by following him. That's my tactic.

eKapija: What do you see as the biggest changes that have taken place in this sector in the past 20 years?

– First of all, globalization. Between the car manufacturer and the supplier, the distance used to be several tens to several hundred kilometers, it was a very regional business. Now, of course, the supply chain has become very global. Apart from globalization, a lot has changed in recent years after covid, and in addition, our sector was certainly affected by global political events. These are two factors that have an impact on the future of the logistics sector. Some countries, such as North American ones, have started to move closer, for example to Mexico, taking the view that it is less risky for them than having those factories in Asia. Because what if something like a pandemic happens again? That's why they want those factories to be closer to them to avoid such potential troubles. For example, I am thinking of car manufacturers.

In Europe, on the other hand, we have sanctions against Russia, oil and gas are very expensive, which is why other costs related to the logistics sector are also increasing. That is why, for example, part of the business is transferred to countries such as Serbia or Turkey. It is not the clearest how the situation unfolds in Europe, it is clearer for the rest of the world. Some factories are returning to North America, some, due to political risks, are leaving China for Vietnam and Thailand. It is unclear in Europe because of the sanctions against Russia and I cannot say for sure how the situation will unfold. But that is the current reality. If you look only at the German market, the most industrialized country in Europe, we see that its production is slowing down, production is moving outside Germany...

eKapija: Since your arrival in the company until today, revenues and profitability have increased significantly. What was the biggest turning point leading to that result?

– As I said, we try to be with our clients, we have our own definition of a client. That, in my opinion, is the turning point. What is our definition? First of all, benefit for both, we want satisfied clients, but also for us to be satisfied. And if there are benefits for both parties, then it must be a profitable business for both - we provide the client with value for which he or she is willing to pay. Otherwise, an unprofitable business is not a good business, it becomes a sponsorship. We always strive for development as well as profitable business. Here I mean reasonable profitability, that clients recognize our values and that they are at the same time ready to pay for it. Because, if there is no such thing, then otherwise it leads to bankruptcy.

eKapija: Why is digitization so important today in your niche, in the transport and logistics sector?

– I could give more answers there, but I wouldn't want to go into so much detail. But I would say that one of the key things is that digitalization offers good solutions formed on the basis of the demands and needs of our clients, solutions that enable quick and easy fulfillment of their requirements. In our business today, the key is not to make deliveries, but to offer clients solutions that are best adapted to their requirements. If the client has a question or a problem, it is up to us to find a solution based on those requirements, to make an offer and to offer what we have done to the client. Digitization is a big turning point in this business, because we can offer numerous solutions and help clients make the right decision. After all, 75% of all requests from our clients are now in digital form, they no longer call or send emails, but are connected to us through our digital tools. One of it is Easy4Pro, a digital tool which helps our customers to organize, actively manage and permanently improve their logistics processes with very high efficiency.

eKapija: Redspher has big names in its portfolio such as Airbus, Volkswagen, Bosch... When we talk about client requests, what are the requests of these and other clients?

We also have a lot of work to do when it comes to agricultural machinery, when our task is to organize urgent delivery. For example, it happens in the middle of the harvest season that an important segment of that machinery breaks down. If something like that happens, he can't wait for days for the malfunction to be fixed, but he has to solve it immediately so that the work can be resumed as soon as possible. You don't have warehouses of those specific parts in all parts of Europe, maybe there are two big ones on the continent. And then, for example, a machine breaks down in Serbia, a spare part can be found in Germany, and you have 24 hours to deliver so that the local mechanics can fix it as soon as possible and the farmer can continue with the harvest. If part of that chain fails, then losses occur.

eKapija: What type of customers currently use this type of service and transportation the most?

– We have three groups of clients. First of all, there are all jobs related to the automotive industry - from car manufacturers to cable manufacturers. Then there are other industries, such as agro-industry, aviation, the defense sector... When it comes to the latter, the need for urgent delivery may not come to the fore as much as the requirements for the delivery of sensitive goods, goods... The third the group is the one that refers to retail, when the buyer of a product wants it to be delivered to him as soon as possible, especially when it comes to big cities, such as Paris or London.

eKapija: Do you expect new clients from other industries in the coming years?

– This is primarily where I see the area of production of electric cars, electric vehicles. It is something completely new, for now we do not fully know how it works, and one important segment of the production of those vehicles is the production of batteries for them. There are many more questions than answers, because the delivery of those batteries is not a classic transport, and certain laws and rules concerning that specific type of transport must be observed. Another business that may be growing or new is anything related to recycling.

eKapija: What do you see as challenges in this transport niche?

– I'm not a visionary, but what I could see from covid is that there are periodic cycles in business, ups and downs that happened every five to seven years. Now that period has shortened, the market changes every six months. One period you have a lot of requests and a lack of offers, and then suddenly, you have more offers than requests. Business conditions have become more unstable, economic dynamics are more unstable than before. The key for companies like ours is to stay "sharp", to adapt to all of this, because if it is not there, you will disappear.

A big fan of the Serbian Olympic champion

When asked about the first impressions and the picture regarding this sector of goods transport in Serbia, Philippe Higelin made a digression with a smile.

– I'm a big fan of Novak Djokovic, that's my first impression. Thanks to Nebojša, I visited Novak restaurant and had the opportunity and honor to visit his room with trophies – Higelin points out.

As he adds, his second impression is that in Serbia, not only when it comes to business communication with partners and clients, but at every step you can easily communicate with people in English.

– Literally everywhere, in restaurants, cafes... It was a surprise for me, I didn't expect it – emphasizes Higelin.

Dejan Aleksić

Premium Freight Logistics d.o.o. Beograd

Redspher

Redspher Group

Flash

Airbus

Volkswagen

Bosch

Philippe Higelin

Nebojša Mandić

Novak Đoković

Easy4Pro

urgent deliveries

cargo transport

premium transport of goods

on demand deliveries

complex deliveries

globalization

COVID