Kees van der Kwaak had the logistics world practically handed to him. In the family company, which was owned by his father and uncles, Kees started handling the transport for Dutch importers like Aartsenfruit, Westland Import and De Groot International. In 1997, he started working for De Groot International. Because the daily commute from Hillegom to Hedel was too much for a family with young children, Kees founded the Mediterranee Expeditie in Nieuw-Vennep, The Netherlands in 2000. The Company has now been active in the 'specialist area' for fifteen years, with transportation to and from Italy, Spain and France. Now they also have offices in Breda, The Netherlands and Valencia, Spain.
Area specialist
"Over the years I have built up a good network in Italy. We have daily transport to and from production areas in Cuneo, Cesena, Ravenna, Latina, Bari en Verona. We have also built up transportation services for Spain in Almeria, Murcia, Valencia, Sevilla and Barcelona; and in France to and from Perpignan, Marseille and Cavaillon. In addition to full truckloads, we also have groupage shipments at these locations. Every week we load up fruits and vegetables for many large customers to supply supermarkets, and for transit to Scandinavian countries. But we don't limit ourselves to the above mentioned areas, we have the ability to load fruits and vegetables all over Italy, Spain and France. We strive to be a specialist in this area. That is how we distinguish ourselves in the market. In recent years we have also driven many times to Greece, but due to the crisis situation Greece is on the back burner now."
In addition to the groupage of fruits and vegetables, Mediterranee Expeditie transports plants and trees, frozen goods, ship supplies, cargo and food products, such as wine and pasta. "We export a lot of cheese from Italy. We use a partition in the truck so we can transport as many different goods as possible. When the Russian boycott started, we were able to quite easily load up the cars with wine; it's nice if you have those kinds of contacts. We are partnered with high quality carriers. On average we have 50 cars a week driving around," says Kees. "Personally, I think the influx of Eastern European carriers is something to be concerned about, in recent years they have taken some of the work from Dutch and Belgian carriers, especially when they have full loads. Fortunately, we have loyal customers that appreciate our quality and fast and direct routes."
