XS Global Logistics – Australia

Interview with

Mr. Cosi Cristodero
Managing Director

Please tell our readers about the history of XS. When was the company established, who owns it, and where do you currently have offices?

XS Global Logistics was established in February 2017 by Xerxes Surty.

The company is owned by Xerxes Surty & Cosi Cristodero, and our Head Office is based in Bibra Lake, WA (near Fremantle) with all Australian port shipments handled from our HO.

Australia is a huge country, indeed a continent. Our readers may like to know the main ports being used for import/export in your country. Could you elaborate? Also, you are located on the West Coast; can you handle cargoes anywhere despite this?

The main ports of Australia include Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide & Fremantle which are all set up for containerised vessel operations and have BB berths that handle BB cargo operations depending on cargo type. In fact, many container carriers are now handling BB type shipments on their container vessels through these ports for certain BB cargo types that can fit within port size and weight limitations. We do offer and support these container carrier solutions for our customers when the cargo type fits the carriers’ handling requirements.

As Western Australia is a major mining area, our Northwest ports (Port Hedland & Dampier) are very busy with BB / Bulk vessels coming in to support our mining industry. Unfortunately, these ports are very busy, and detention is a common issue with BB carriers into these ports.

We have noticed we are handling a lot more OOG / Project work in QLD Northeast ports for similar mining type shipments as Western Australia. These shipments are coming out of China & SE Asia, with Mackay, Gladstone and Townsville BB port calls being utilised more these days for these types of shipments.

The great advantage of our business is that by having great people and service partners located at each port, we can handle any shipment into any port of Australia from our HO base in Perth and have people on the ground to assist at each port when needed.

Do you face the same problems concerning some shipping lines wanting to be freight forwarders and thus competing directly with you in Australia? How do you view this scenario?

At this stage, we find that shipping lines still cannot offer the type of services, problem solving, and 24/7 communication that our customers want from a service provider.

There is (and I feel will always be) a gap between what a specific shipping line can offer a shipper vs what Freight Forwarders can offer shippers as an end-to-end solution utilising multiple services.

We keep getting told our services will not be needed in the future, and when it comes to AI tools, this may work for some shippers. But I continue to see the opposite. When it comes to the extensive shipping options available in the market, and/or planning and solution driven needs from our customers, our customers continue to want us to navigate and handle this process from start to finish, and therefore why our business continues to grow and exceed all expectations year after year.

Could you provide our readers with a couple of examples of project cargoes that you have handled?

1. Per included photos we have found commercially viable solutions to move smaller dump trucks ex Europe on 40’ FR equipment with container carriers. Refer attached example – CAT775G – Fremantle.
2. We have recently moved 1 x dump truck tray ex SE Asia to Turkey using CMA CGM container vessels as. This was a great solution and option for 1 x tray.

Are you currently a member of any freight forwarding networks to get a global presence? If so, do you find it worthwhile to be a member?

We are only members of Cross Ocean Network. However, we do obtain support from CLC Network when a suitable partner is not available in our Cross Ocean Network. This network works very well for our current services as the network is large enough to support all trades lane requirements but limited to members in each country, so we are not lost in the network.

In addition to the network, we also do have our exclusive freight forwarder partners that we have worked with for many years who are part of our team.  This is a great sales tool for our customers: knowing that we have direct relationships with the owners and operators of our overseas and local partners.

How do you find the customer service level currently from the main shipowners?

Currently, the service levels have been ok from the shipping owners, and we have some great relationships. I say that in a low period, but as we now move into Peak Season, I feel this will change. I hope not…😊

How is the market for you currently, and if you look into your crystal ball for the remainder of the year, what do you see?

The market has changed from a low season period to a high peak season period over the last few months with most vessel operators telling us they are over capacity with space issues out of NE & SE Asia into Australia. This has seen delays in bookings, and price increases. Our understanding is that this could last for the reminder of the year depending on supply and demand from shippers and importers. We continue to navigate these pressures for our customers and are always pushing to find the best possible solutions for each shipment.

How would it be best for our readers to get in touch with you?