April 7, Hong Kong: Dachser, a global logistics service, had considerable development in 2024, increasing revenues by 13% and generating revenue that surpassed the 8 billion mark to EUR 8.027 billion. Other important metrics, including personnel (+3,300), locations (+56), and pallet spaces in its warehouses (+720,000), all showed notable year-over-year improvements for the family-run business. In 2024, group sales climbed by 13%. record investments of around 490 million euros. Additional investments of around EUR 400 million are anticipated in 2025. There were about 720,000 more pallet slots added to contract logistics.

The purchases of Frigoscandia, Brummer, and DACHSER & FERCAM Italia, which will initially show up on the financial sheet in 2024, are primarily responsible for this increase. When compared to the prior year, Dachser expanded by 4.7% in terms of pure organic growth, that is, without acquisitions. Resilience in its European groupage network and rising air and marine freight rates were the main drivers of this. Tonnage climbed by 10.2 percent to around 44.1 million, while transported volumes increased by 7.6 percent to over 83.2 million shipments.

If Germany and Europe had provided greater economic impetus, company development would have been more dynamic: “Our firm has also been impacted by high expenses, sluggish industrial output, and a drop in personal spending. Additionally, the several global problems we are now facing have put our clients and ourselves through a continual stress test,” says Burkhard Eling, CEO of Dachser.

During a crisis, investing increases competitiveness.

Dachser made large investments by leveraging its strength and stability. In 2024, the logistics firm quadrupled its annual investment in staff, network locations, company acquisitions, digital innovation, and climate action, including e-mobility growth, to over EUR 490 million. In 2025, Dachser’s network is expected to receive an additional investment of around EUR 400 million. “Those who act during a downturn to invest wisely and consistently will enter the next upturn with the wind in their sails,” Eling asserts. “We have previously used this countercyclical business strategy to weather crises and come out stronger and more competitive. This time, it will occur once again.

In 2024, Dachser added almost 3,300 employees, bringing its total employment to over 37,300. There are now 433 sites globally, an increase of 56. This also takes into account the purchases made in Germany, Austria, Italy, and Northern Europe the year before. Additionally, the 2024-launched joint venture in Japan has been included for the first time.

A detailed look at business growth

In 2024, Dachser’s Road Logistics business division, which includes the transportation and storage of consumer and industrial products (European Logistics) and food (Food Logistics), had a 10.9 percent growth in sales, reaching EUR 6.4 billion.

Revenue for the European Logistics business line climbed by 8.1 percent to around EUR 4.8 billion. Tonnage increased by 2.8 percent and the number of shipments handled by 6.5 percent. High cost pressure in important sectors, rising customer price sensitivity, and heightened competition as a result of low demand for transportation and storage were the main drivers of developments at Dachser’s European business divisions. “The fact that we were able to grow not only through acquisitions, but also organically in a stagnating market, illustrates the trust our customers place in the high reliability and quality of our network,” Eling states.

The merging of Frigoscandia and Brummer in 2024 and Muller in 2023 has given the Food Logistics business line a new European character. Tonnage climbed by 31.5 percent to around 13.9 million metric tons, shipments increased by 14.3 percent to about 12.4 million, and revenue increased by almost 20 percent to about EUR 1.7 billion. Eling states: “We have purchased businesses that have effectively expanded their operations outside the logistics of fresh food, that cater to other markets and consumer groups in Europe, and lastly, that have sizable truck fleets of their own. All of this is a component of Dachser Food Logistics’s new strategic market positioning.

In 2024, revenue in the Air & Sea Logistics business sector increased by precisely 22% to around EUR 1.6 billion. In this case, Dachser profited mostly from transient special events that raised air and sea freight prices. These include the Red Sea capacity bottleneck situation and the European-Chinese e-commerce industry.

Dachser’s growth plan in 2024 also heavily relied on contract logistics, which is the integration of transportation, storage, and value-added services tailored to individual customers. Pallet spaces expanded by around 720,000 to 3.8 million due to expansion expenditures and the capacity of the acquired enterprises. Customers of Dachser may now benefit from warehouse services in 190 sites throughout the globe.

Eling anticipates that 2025 will be again another very difficult year for logistics, with no growth stimulus coming from Europe. “We can see that Europe’s economy is essentially stagnant and that painful capacity changes are occurring alongside it. This implies that we must deal with transformation processes in energy-intensive sectors like the chemical industry as well as important businesses like the automobile industry. Global uncertainties are also rising, and there is a risk of economic downturns brought on by protectionism, tariffs and counter-tariffs, and geopolitical wars.

In light of this, it is critical that Dachser expands outside Europe. “We will put more effort into expanding our footprint in the Americas and Asia and use our distinct competitive edge—the European groupage network—to link these areas. Because our resilience increases with the size of our worldwide footprint,” Eling explains.

A summary of revenue

Current reports, essays, and interviews on issues that affect us now and in the future may be found often in the DACHSER magazine: Dachser magazine.com

Concerning Dachser

Dachser Air & Sea Logistics and Dachser Road Logistics are two business divisions of the family-run firm Dachser, which has its headquarters in Kempten, Germany. It offers warehousing, transport logistics, and bespoke services. Dachser European Logistics and Dachser Food Logistics are the two business lines that make up the latter. The company’s offerings are completed with industry-specific solutions and comprehensive contract logistics services. Intelligent logistics solutions are guaranteed globally via a smooth shipping network in Europe and abroad as well as completely integrated IT systems.

With over 37,300 workers spread across 433 sites worldwide, Dachser produced a combined net revenue of almost EUR 8 billion in 2024. The logistics firm handled 83.2 million shipments totaling 44.1 million metric tons in the same year. In forty-three countries, Dachser is represented by national organizations. Please visit dachser.com to learn more about Dachser.