UK – Ferry operator and multi-modal logistics provider Norfolkline have reported that they have further increased their market share in the cross-Channel ferry industry and expanded their workforce to deal with increased demand for its financial services.
Figures compiled by IRN Research show that Norfolkline has increased its share of the cross-Channel car ferry market with its Dover-Dunkirk route from 4% in 2004 to 28% in 2009 (to date). The operator believes that by the end of this year it will have carried an estimated two and a half million passengers in 2009.
Speaking of the figures Chris Newey, General Manager Passenger Services, English Channel said that they “…reflect the strength and success of Norfolkline’s business model but also the fact that the company has effectively bucked the economic trend by continuing to grow and out-perform the competition.
“We put Norfolkline’s success down to three things: our brand new ships which offer passengers a consistent high quality experience unlike the mixture of old and new offered by the competition; dedicated decks for freight and tourist passengers ensuring that there is no need for lorry and car drivers to mix; and Dunkerque being a less congested terminal than Calais, allowing customers to board and disembark quickly and easily.”
Norfolkline also announced yesterday that it is to locate its European Financial Services Centre in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The company already employs some 30 people at its Finance Service Centre, with an additional 360 employed in its logistics and ferry operations in the province, and now plans to increase that number to 90 over the next 18 months.
The move is a consolidation of Norfolkline’s existing finance administration functions which are currently spread across seven European countries and the growth in the company is in sharp contrast to rival SeaFrance, some of whose troubles we reported upon yesterday.
(pic: © Norfolkline)
