Antwerp-headquartered Ahlers Logistics has established a branch in Hamburg, Germany, and appointed Julian Kurz as its business development manager, Western Europe.
Kurz has almost 30 years of experience in logistics, primarily in project forwarding. He joins Ahlers from DHL Industrial Projects where he served as business development manager for projects in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
Opening the branch to be closer to heavy industry and project logistics customers in Germany, Austria and Switzerland – known as the DACH region – Kurz is optimistic about the opportunities on offer for Ahlers. “Many major industrial groups are based here, and while we already support some subsidiaries, there’s room to expand to their headquarters and global operations,” he said. “The environment is challenging (geopolitical tensions, tariffs, economic pressure, etc) but that also creates opportunities for agile players like us.”
With a focus on project and consumer logistics, Ahlers has supported DACH-based projects for decades. Kurz said that having a physical presence “makes a big difference”.
“Logistics isn’t only about paperwork and phone calls ─ sometimes you need to see the cargo, meet engineers at a production site, or inspect a port or warehouse. These visits often lead to more efficient solutions, like modifying equipment to reduce oversize and save significant costs,” he explained.
