Credit: Dachser
On Thursday 3 April 2025, Dachser, a globally active logistics provider with headquarters in Grevenmacher and Kempten in Germany, published its 2024 accounts which recorded strong growth in 2024, surpassing the €8 billion revenue mark, a 13% increase over the previous year.
The family-owned company's workforce is also up significantly (+3,300), as are the number of its sites (+56) and pallet locations (+720,000). This growth was largely due to the acquisitions of Dachser & Fercam Italia, Frigoscandia, and Brummer, which were included in the company's balance sheet for the first time in 2024. Dachser's purely organic growth, i.e., excluding acquisitions, was 4.7% compared to 2023. This growth was primarily driven by the resilience of the European freight network and higher rates in air and ocean freight. The volume of goods transported increased by 7.6% to 83.2 million shipments, while total tonnage increased by 10.2% to approximately 44.1 million.
This growth was hampered by the stagnation of the German and European economies: "Rising costs, weak industrial production, and declining household consumption had a negative impact on our business." "At the same time, the numerous crises we are currently facing around the world have tested the resilience of our customers and, consequently, that of our company," said Burkhard Eling, CEO of Dachser.
Investing in times of crisis to strengthen competitiveness
Dachser has taken advantage of its financial stability and health to invest heavily. In 2024, the logistics provider doubled its investments in acquisitions, network locations, workforce, digitalisation, and climate protection measures, such as the expansion of e-mobility, with a total investment of approximately €490 million. In 2025, the company plans to invest another nearly €400 million in its network. "Companies that act in times of recession and invest intelligently and consistently thrive in times of recovery," continued Burkhard Eling. “This countercyclical business policy has already enabled us to emerge stronger and more competitive from past crises. It will be the same this time.”
The teams were strengthened in 2024 by some 3,300 additional employees, bringing the total workforce to 37,300. At the same time, 56 new sites were integrated into the network, which now numbers 433 worldwide. This expansion also reflects the previous year's acquisitions in Italy, Northern Europe, Germany and Austria. The joint venture established in Japan in 2024 is also included for the first time.
Business Areas in Focus
The revenue of the Road Logistics division, which combines the transport and warehousing of industrial and consumer goods (European Logistics) and food products (Food Logistics), increased by 10.9% in 2024 to €6.4 billion. At €4.8 billion, the European Logistics business line posted an 8.1% increase in revenue, with shipments up 6.5% and tonnages up 2.8%. The European business units' activities were impacted by strong cost pressures in key industries, more price-sensitive customers, and increased competition due to weak demand for transport and warehousing. "In addition to growth through acquisitions, our organic growth in a stagnant market demonstrates our customers' confidence in the high reliability and quality of our network," Burkhard Eling emphasised.
With the integration of Müller in 2023 and Frigoscandia and Brummer in 2024, the Food Logistics business line has taken on a new European dimension. It recorded a 20% increase in revenue to €1.7 billion. The number of shipments increased by 14.3% to 12.4 million, and tonnage by 31.5% to 13.9 million tonnes. Burkhard Eling said: "We have acquired companies that have successfully developed other business areas beyond fresh produce logistics, that are present in complementary customer segments and markets in Europe, and that, above all, have large truck fleets. This approach is in line with the new strategic positioning of Dachser Food Logistics." Revenue in the Air & Sea Logistics business line increased by 22% in 2024 to around €1.6 billion. This increase primarily reflects specific short-term developments that have driven up rates in air and ocean freight, including the capacity crisis in the Red Sea and e-commerce between China and Europe.
In the contract logistics sector, Dachser's growth strategy focused on combining transport, warehousing, and customer-specific value-added services. Investments in warehouse expansion and the capacity of acquired companies have resulted in approximately 720,000 additional pallet spaces, bringing the total to 3.8 million. Dachser customers now benefit from warehousing services at 190 locations worldwide.
According to Burkhard Eling, 2025 will be another challenging year for logistics due to the expected weak growth in Europe. "We are seeing a stagnation in the European economy, which is accompanied by sometimes painful capacity adjustments. We are also facing transformation processes in key sectors such as the automotive industry and energy-intensive sectors like chemicals." Furthermore, uncertainty and the risk of an economic slowdown have increased worldwide due to protectionism, threats of reciprocal tariffs, and geopolitical conflicts.
In this context, growth outside Europe is essential for Dachser. "We will focus on strengthening our presence in the Americas and Asia and connecting these markets to our European groupage network, which is our core competitive advantage. The broader our global footprint, the greater our resilience," explained Burkhard Eling.
Business Development in Luxembourg
In 2024, Dachser Luxembourg once again experienced stable growth. Compared to 2023, revenue increased by more than 2.8%, reaching nearly €17.9 million. The number of shipments exceeded 212,400, while tonnage increased by 5.3% to nearly 70,400 tons. These positive results are a testament to the commitment and expertise of Dachser Luxembourg's 53 employees.
Thanks to its strong local presence, short lines of communication, and resolutely customer-centric approach, Dachser Luxembourg once again demonstrated the effectiveness of its business model. "Thanks to our small, motivated team, we can respond quickly to our customers' needs in a market that is evolving and becoming increasingly complex every day," explained Janine Weber, Country Manager at Dachser Luxembourg. “At the same time, we benefit from a direct connection to our strong European network. This combination of local roots and strong international connections makes us a reliable partner in a constantly changing environment.” Continuous investments within Dachser allow customers to fully benefit from the economies of scale of an increasingly powerful and optimized European network. In addition to its commercial success, Dachser Luxembourg continues to engage with the local community by supporting various initiatives and partnerships in the region.
Like Luxembourg, the other Benelux countries recorded positive developments in 2024. Despite a challenging market, Dachser was able to maintain stability and continue its growth in the Netherlands and Belgium. “The year 2024 illustrates our ability, as a Benelux organization, to develop and strengthen our position sustainably, even in a complex environment,” emphasised Aat van der Meer, Managing Director of Dachser Benelux. "We are continuing to build an integrated network, where collaboration, quality, and a long-term vision are at the heart of our strategy. This commitment enables us to provide our customers with reliable and forward-looking solutions."
Annual revenue in the Benelux region once again surpassed the half-billion-euro mark, reaching €543.3 million, an increase of 3.5%. The 1,478 employees, spread across fifteen locations, processed 3.6 million shipments for a total volume of 1.5 million tons.
