FedEx signs deal to buy French express firm TATEX
FedEx has now signed an agreement to acquire French business-to-business express company TATEX. The US integrator confirmed yesterday that, subject to regulatory approvals, it will take over a company with more than 1,000 employees, handling about 19m shipments each year, generating an annual revenue of about EUR 150m.
TATEX gives FedEx a network of 35 shipping centres, including six regional hubs, and a central hub a Lieusaint, just south of Paris.
The acquisition comes as Memphis-based FedEx continues its expansion in Europe, as rival UPS moves to buy the Dutch-based integrator TNT Express.
Frederick W. Smith, chairman, president and chief executive officer of FedEx Corp, said: “FedEx has always recognized the importance of our Europe, Middle East, Indian Subcontinent and Africa (EMEA) region and its many unique marketplaces to global trade, and this acquisition shows we are continuing to systematically and strategically invest in growing our network and value proposition in these important areas of the world.”
FedEx announce plans last month to buy Polish courier company Opek, while it has also been expanding organically in Europe in recent years, opening 38 new stations across Europe since October 2011, including 19 in France.
Entering the French market in 1985, the company now has 3,000 employees in the country, with its EMEA hub at Paris’ Roissy Charles de Gaule airport the largest FedEx Express hub outside the US.
Smith said: “The TATEX business complements FedEx existing operations in the French market, and will enable the company to provide additional local services in one of Europe’s largest geographies, to its customers around the world.”
“Powerful”
TATEX was founded in 1976 and specialises in business-to-business express transportation for parcels and pallets in France.
The company spent just over a decade under the ownership of national postal service La Poste from the mid-1990s until 2005, when a 70% stake was taken by French investment company Xaap Finance.
After coming close to being acquired by French logistics company Geodis last year, TATEX said joining the FedEx network would prove a “powerful” combination.
Xavier Papot, the TATEX president, said: “Once the transaction closes, the combination of FedEx international reach, and the well-established and comprehensive domestic network of TATEX, will be a powerful and valuable combination that will deliver immediate value for our customers, employees and the communities in which we operate.”
