Our history
Jo and Anne's company has grown into an integrated logistics service provider, a partner for transport and logistics, which, as a one-stop shop director of a multimodal logistics chain, offers its customers added value and full relief in an increasingly complex (circular) supply chain.
Van Moer Logistics constantly strives to balance economic, ecological and social interests. The company uses a flat decision-making structure, values great importance to people-driven entrepreneurship and thus succeeds in remaining an agile organisation.
Our history
Jo and Anne's company has grown into an integrated logistics service provider, a partner for transport and logistics, which, as a one-stop shop director of a multimodal logistics chain, offers its customers added value and full relief in an increasingly complex (circular) supply chain.
Van Moer Logistics constantly strives to balance economic, ecological and social interests. The company uses a flat decision-making structure, values great importance to people-driven entrepreneurship and thus succeeds in remaining an agile organisation.
1990: start of transport
In 1990, the then 20-year-old Jo Van Moer started his own transport company. From two damaged trucks, each with a million kilometres on the clock, he made one solid truck that he drove day and night. His wife Anne Verstraeten contacted companies in the area to look for return shipments and new loads.
1993: first warehouse
Jo Van Moer realized that he was not earning great margins with just transport. He therefore opened his first warehouse in Melsele in 1993, close to the port of Antwerp. This warehouse was highly demanded as dockers in the Antwerp port at the time only worked until 3pm. Trucks arriving after 3pm had to wait until the next day to unload their cargo. Jo saw the opportunity and immediately responded: he allowed carriers to unload in his warehouse 24/7 and handled transport to the port terminals himself. In 1996, he opened a second warehouse in Temse.
1997: the fire
In August 1997, disaster struck in Melsele. A forklift short-circuited and caused a major fire. Not only did the warehouse go up in flames, but the adjoining offices and Jo and Anne's private home were completely reduced to ashes. Because no mutual waiver of recourse was provided for in the agreements with the customers, a cartload of claims from customers and their insurance companies followed. Jo and Anne's insurance broker at the time advised them to prepare for bankruptcy.
For Jo and Anne, however, applying for failure was not an option. Giving up was and is not in their vocabulary. In his search for a solution, Jo Van Moer came into contact with the manager of a renowned insurance agency, who made him a proposal to follow up the case and provide a solution.
While the settlement of the claim was ongoing, Jo and Anne continued their activities in their second warehouse in Temse. Together with their two young children, they lived in a caravan for a year and a half, while steadily rebuilding their activities.
1999: port of antwerp
The warehouse in Temse quickly ran into its limits. In 1999, he therefore opened his first warehouse on Antwerp's left bank (Kallo). Jo Van Moer anticipated the relocation of major players in the Antwerp port from the right to the left bank, due to increasing congestion.
At this strategic location, Jo deployed an intermodal 'shuttle train', transporting 200 containers a day between the port terminals on the right bank and the warehouse in Kallo. This unique train connection allowed containers to be transported congestion-free to the left bank, where there was space to handle and store the goods.
2005: diversification
Until 2005, Van Moer Logistics concentrated on road transport and storage, but Jo Van Moer had become convinced that diversification was needed to continue growing and strengthen his company's position. He therefore took over 'Janssens Cleaning'. With this, Van Moer Logistics became active in cleaning bulk trucks and tank containers.
To further expand his services to the chemical sector, Jo Van Moer was looking for a new site in the port of Antwerp where he could further develop his tank cleaning business. He found a greenfield in Zwijndrecht, in the middle of the chemical cluster of the Antwerp port. In 2008, Van Moer Logistics opened its brand-new warehouse, cleaning facilities and head office there. The investment in the new headquarters amounted to 25 million euros, on a turnover of 60 million euros.
2008: global crisis
The completion of the new building took place in August. Barely two months later, Lehman Brothers fell and a few more months later the global financial crisis broke out. Van Moer Logistics' turnover fell by as much as 45%. The banks announced that they would revoke the loans granted and demanded a large part of the loan back within 6 months.
The company was going through a rough patch. During this period, Jo and Anne received an enticing takeover offer, which would get them out of trouble in one go and leave them with a nice private sum. After yet another setback in this highly competitive market, a desperate Jo Van Moer was about to give up, but that was beyond Anne Verstraeten. The iron-fisted Anne was able to convince her husband not to give up and, thanks to their entrepreneurial spirit, they continued to negotiate with the banks.
Bolstered by an independent adviser, Jo and Anne were still able to obtain a deferred payment. The payment was spread over three years, with Jo and Anne having to pay off one instalment each quarter, but on condition that they also contributed their private capital. In 2009, Jo and Anne sold their private house and with that money they already paid off a first part of their debts. This gave the company some room to continue its activities again.
However, it remained challenging to pay the remaining instalments. To cut costs, internal restructuring was necessary. Jo and Anne searched day and night for new customers, requested deferred payments from their suppliers and were able to count on the support of some key early partners as the economic landscape steadily recovered.
2011: multimodal vision
In 2011, an opportunity presented itself in Grimbergen. Through a business connection, Jo Van Moer came into contact with ‘De Vlaamse Waterweg’, which was marketing a vacant barge terminal. It was a leap into the unknown, but Jo was convinced that multimodal freight transport had huge future potential. The takeover raised many questions among other road hauliers, who feared that Van Moer Logistics would rival road transport with inland shipping.
Van Moer Logistics initially handled goods at the terminal mainly for existing customers, but in 2015 Jo Van Moer managed to convince new major players of its multimodal vision. Volumes rose at lightning speed and in 2016 Van Moer Logistics started expanding its own barge fleet to serve the terminal.
2012: management structure
During and also after the crisis of 2008, Jo and Anne had continued to manage all departments of their company themselves: both personnel management, all purchases, customer acquisition, IT and other support services they monitored themselves. But due to explosive growth, Van Moer Logistics needed to employ a structure that could support the company's further development.
In 2012, Jo Van Moer hired an experienced CEO, external professionals were recruited and the executive committee took shape. The group's new board then signed off on the ambitious '2020-200' target: to double revenue from 100 to 200 million euros in five years through organic growth and acquisitions.
Installing a strong board of directors, with external directors, was also part of the structuring and professionalisation of Van Moer Logistics. Besides the board of directors, an "advisory board" was also established.
2016: national expansion
At about the same time, what Jo Van Moer had foreseen happened in the Port of Antwerp. For years, Van Moer Logistics competed with the service providers located on the right bank, who therefore did not have to bear the cost of driving through the Tunnel. However, deep-sea terminals were now starting to establish themselves on the left bank and this obviously worked to Van Moer Logistics' advantage, which greatly expanded its position on the left bank in the period between 2016 - 2020.
With the arrival of new partners, the first steps in e-commerce and fast-moving consumer goods were also taken from 2020. These flows ensured the geographical anchoring of Van Moer Logistics outside the Port of Antwerp, particularly in Ghent, Brussels and Grobbendonk.
2021: partnership with Ackermans & van Haaren
The investment company acquired an equity stake in Van Moer Logistics through a capital increase in June 2021.
This freed up resources to realize Van Moer Logistics' further (international) ambitions. The shareholders of Van Moer Logistics are fully aligned to continue supporting the company in its growth ambitions in the future. Moreover, the cooperation with Ackermans & van Haaren enables Van Moer Logistics to further structure and professionalize their organization.
