German Hermes sees over 1.0 bln euro sales for 2006

German logistics services provider Hermes Logistik Gruppe, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the local mail order company Otto GmbH, expects to post more than 1.0 bln euro (USD 1.282 bln) in sales for 2006 due to its strong performance and fast growth on the market so far, the company’s CEO Hanjo Schneider said on November 21, 2006.

The annual sales growth is projected to reach the double-digit percentage range, Schneider added.

He did not specify the expected financial figures for 2006, but said that Hermes’s results will be additionally boosted by the strong demand during the Christmas season.

Since its foundation three years ago, Hamburg-based Hermes increased the number of its outlets in Germany to 13,000. The company is the biggest competitor of local postal group Deutsche Post AG on the market for package deliveries for private clients. Currently, Deutsche Post has a network of 12,500 outlets in the country.

Since September 2006, Hermes is present on the private package deliveries markets of 20 European countries.

According to Schneider, the expansion abroad was a significant success for Hermes.

Hermes also plans to enter the German mail delivery market as of January 1, 2008. The company will charge between 10 pct and 15 pct below the tariffs of current monopoly Deutsche Post. Hermes (www.hermes-logistik-gruppe.de) plans to offer a nationwide mail delivery network with own mailboxes at its outlets. The deliveries will be carried out via mail delivery firm Europost, which Hermes co-owns.

(Editor’s note: The abstract is based on information published by German newspaper Hamburger Abendblatt on November 21, 2006 and the German News Digest on September 8, 2005.)

www.abendblatt.de,http://www.aiidatapro.com

Source: Hamburger Abendblatt,AII Data Processing Ltd.