21st Century Eurovan

Reproduced by kind permission of The Mover magazine

Steve Jordan investigates Eurovan, the organisation that many thought had gone away, but remains a major part of the European and global moving scene.

For many, the name Eurovan harks back to another era, back in the 1980s, when the organisation joined with CETI to form what is today OMNI.  Today it’s the same organisation, sort of, but times have changed, and the company has changed too.

Eurovan was originally formed in 1968 by some of the major moving companies in Europe to handle intra-European moves for the group. It was very successful during the 1970s and 80s but came under pressure from the Allied-owned CETI which precipitated the formation of OMNI in 1985.  Shortly after Eurovan disappeared from the European market becoming a dormant company.

In 2002 Confern in Germany stepped in and bought the majority of the shares. The new company was registered in Switzerland but wasn’t initially successful.  After restructuring as Eurovan Deutschland, with around a dozen members, it began to prosper.  Scroll forward to 2016 and the organisation decided to open its ambitions beyond Europe to include members from the rest of the world. Today it has around 55 members split 50/50 between Europe and elsewhere. 

Tobia Crisostomo, Head of Coordination for Eurovan, based at the company’s head office in Mannheim, Germany, explained the way the organisation works today.

Much of the company’s work involves the movement of part loads around Europe for its members. He explained that moving small loads across Europe can be made economic for members by channelling the work through the Eurovan office. “We allow our members to get the job done quickly and easily, and make some money at the same time,” he said. “We provide our members with a fixed quotation for any consignment allowing them to mark it up as they wish.  When the job is secured, we handle the rest.”  Eurovan also helps members with services such as export packing, porter hire, specialist labour for pianos, etc., parking permits, handyman services, tradesmen or recycling services. Companies may also contact Eurovan for backloads if they have capacity on their own vehicles.

For the non-European members, Eurovan operates a coordination service allowing them to perform third-country moves intra-Europe or from Europe to anywhere else, with confidence. “Not every company has the experience to handle these moves,” explained Tobia.  “We take over that role for them so they can service their clients knowing that we are here to coordinate everything.”  Indeed the service is available to non-Eurovan members but, of course, members enjoy lower rates.  Eurovan also handles the clearance and delivery of groupage containers throughout Europe, for its international partners.

Earlier this year, Eurovan agreed a close partnership with Euromovers International, giving all Euromovers members access to Eurovan services, greatly extending the flexibility of both organisations.

Confern had also started in the 1960s specifically to service the German market.  Bringing in Eurovan as its international wing has enabled it to offer its coordination service to a much wider market. Andreas Kölling, General Manager for Eurovan and Confern, explained:

“We have 60 members of Confern in Germany, all moving companies. From the head office we coordinate the consignments but also sell directly to corporate accounts.  We have contracts with many international organisations based in Germany.” 

Another major benefit to members is the inhouse insurance department that not only provides cover for members but also negotiates claims on their behalf.  “We make sure we respond to all claims within two hours, which gives our clients some comfort that their claim is being handled and taken seriously,” said Andreas.

So for those of you who thought that Eurovan disappeared in the 1980s when OMNI was formed – well, it did, sort of, but it’s back now.  It’s not the same organisation but it enjoys a shared history with its predecessor and is currently providing a vital service to its growing membership.

Photo: Andreas Kölling, General Manager for Eurovan and Confern (left) and Tobia Crisostomo, Head of Coordination for Eurovan