Allport Cargo Services has announced that it will acquire French freight forwarder ECT at the end of June. ECT is a long-term forwarding partner of Allport and a member of Far East Cargo Line (Allport’s NVOCC).
ECT was founded in 1992 in the French port city of Le Havre as a sea freight forwarder. Sister companies were set up to provide transport services (ECC) and logistics (ECL) and ECT owns a 12,500 sq m bonded warehouse outside the Port of Le Havre with space for 17,000 pallets.
In 2006 an office was opened in South France and in 2010 in Paris Charles De Gaulle Airport to cater for air freight. ECT has also just opened new offices in Nantes and Bordeaux on May 2, which have a particular focus on wine and food perishable exports to China.
Looking ahead, Allport plans to deploy its “Technology-enabled Supply Chain” solutions in the French market, building on its UK presence. Eric Coicaud, the founder of ECT, will remain as President and continue to lead the company, which will in time be renamed Allport Cargo Services.
