Miami hub: Cost brake for Latin America cargo

15 to 20 percent cost savings are made possible for a. hartrodt's customers who ship cargo from Europe or Asia to Latin America via the Miami (USA) hub. "Direct airfreight connections to Latin America are not only more expensive, but also face more space restrictions," says Evelyn Cepero, Business Development Manager at a. hartrodt (U.S.A.) in Miami, Florida. Miami International Airport (MIA) is served much more frequently than airports in the Caribbean or South America, she adds. 8 kilometers from MIA, a. hartrodt operates its own 1,200-square-meter warehouse with a comprehensive range of services.

High rack and block storage, bilingual employees

"We differentiate ourselves from competitors through our various in-house transport and logistics services that include a state of the art warehouse facility built in 2017," emphasizes Cepero. According to her, the growing metropolitan region with a population of around 2.72 million counts with around 2,500 freight forwarders. Miami is considered the gateway to Latin America as the city alone has more flight connections than any other in the US. At a. hartrodt, employees switch fluently between English and Spanish with a high expertise in the region’s trade.

Container Freight Station with IBEC license, and bonded warehouse

In the Container Freight Station (CFS), a. hartrodt deconsolidates bonded cargo for re-export to Latin America. "Thanks to our IBEC license, we can consolidate bonded cargo for example ex China with US merchandise and ship it to Chile, Colombia or Peru without any duties in the US," explains Cepero. Latin America's flow of goods into Miami consists of approximately 79 percent of all imports into the US, such as textiles, foodstuff, and minerals. Miami also handles approximately 74 percent of all exports, such as agricultural machinery, chemicals and spare parts. "We can store that in our bonded warehouse for up to five years," Cepero says. Everything meets Transportation Security Administration (TSA) security standards along with CTPAT training (Customs Trade Partnership Against Terrorism).

Cepero has been with a. hartrodt since its launch in Miami in 2016: "Customers benefit from our personalized service and more than 100 years of Latin America presence." Operational costs are lower than in New York or California, she says: "That's why Miami is also interesting for sea freight customers into Latin America."