Raben Ukraine 10 years on the logistics market

Raben Ukraine started its business activity in 2003 from only one branch located in Kiev, which had up to 5 employees. In 2005 it was enlarged to 5 branches already (Kyiv, Dnipropetrivs’k, Odesa, Lviv and Kharkiv) where about 30 employees worked altogether.The period from 2003 till 2008 was the time of active retail network development which greatly influenced the logistics market of Ukraine. Basically, the big retail chains were the initiators of certain systematization and standardization in the logistics sphere, i.e. palletized goods, packaging and labeling, terms of delivery etc. Such strict rules forced many companies to think of flow optimization within the supply chain. For Raben Ukraine this systematization resulted in further development, both in terms of service quality and terms of delivery. In 2009, in order to meet our Customers’ demands, Raben Ukraine opened a professional X-dock with 52 loading ramps enabling Customers to execute transloading of goods instead of their storing. It was the first professional X-dock on the Ukrainian logistics market, as well as a meaningful historical milestone in the company development. Nowadays Raben Ukraine employs about 700 people, showing a significant employment growth since the beginning of its operations in Ukraine (2004: 7; 2006: 292).By the end of 2012, Raben Ukraine's turnover amounted to UAH 344mln. which is 32 times bigger comparing to 2005 and accordingly EUR 33,5mln (2012) to EUR 1,8mln (2005) which is almost 19 times bigger. Starting from 2010, road transport shipping is gathering pace again, showing certain growth and becoming more and more popular. Being one of the leaders among 3PL providers, Raben Ukraine strives to follow market trends and to constantly develop itself in terms of purchasing new transport vehicles, enlarging warehouse facilities, improving the service portfolio and educating staff. By June 2013 the company had 550 vehicles at its disposal (both own and subcontracted), showing 10% growth each year. The warehouse facilities of Raben Ukraine increased from 10,000m² in 2006 up to 60,000m² by August 2013 (including regions). “Raben Ukraine is one of the few companies that keep investing in spite of the vague economic situation in the country. In 2011, Raben Ukraine finished the construction of the X-dock (2^nd phase) and in 2012 opened the customs cargo terminal on our premises. The total value of investments amounted to UAH 24,6mln. (EUR 2,4mln). The next step of our development will be the construction of a new 20,000m² warehouse for mixed storage of dangerous and ambient goods. This project has already been approved and launched and its opening is planned for the first quarter of 2014. The total value of investments into this project will reach UAH 68mln. (EUR 6,4mln.)” – says Boris Khruslov, Director of Raben Ukraine. “We entered the Ukrainian market at the beginning of the logistics industry formation. First trainings and seminars on the subject of logistics just started to appear and only few 3PL operators were present on the market. Yet the market had the potential. We can surely admit that Raben Ukraine was developing together with the market and due to our Customers. We’re happy to be a part of this development. Now we have 8 branches in major Ukrainian cities and 17 sub-branches providing full range of logistic services. The modern X-dock, developed distribution network, our own customs cargo terminal, professional warehouse facilities and the qualified staff give our Customers a real advantage in terms of optimizing costs and providing them with tailor made solutions. End users, in turn, can use the advantage of receiving goods on time, in required quantity, in appropriate quality and with minimum costs” – sums up Ewald Raben, President and CEO of Raben Group.