Lithuanian haulage giant Girteka Logistics has responded with surprise to the stir its recent discount campaign has caused across the European road transport sector.
Last week, Girteka Logistics published information on the discounts, which featured prices up to 35% lower than the average market price. Most of the discounted routes involved France and its neighbouring countries, and were only available for around 2 weeks.
Although the opportunity to book a load at a bargain price was presumably welcomed by a number of companies, the campaign also attracted some negative attention – not least as it follows a recent documentary that accused Girteka Logistics of serious wrongdoings when it comes to driver welfare (accusations that Girteka Logistics have strongly denied).
Once news of the discounts spread across Europe, there was noticeable anger in the comments sections of Facebook pages and groups dedicated to road transport in countries such as Germany and Denmark. Several users were quick to accuse the road transport firm of offering poor conditions to drivers so as to practice price dumping.
However, in response to the stir the discount campaign appeared to cause, a Girteka Logistics spokesperson told eurotransport.de that the promotional prices were nothing unusual in the company’s daily business operations.
According to eurotransport.de, a Girteka spokesperson explained that the reasons for the discounts is an imbalance between imports and exports. In certain markets, more goods go in than out. Therefore, Girteka offers discounts on return loads, which “are a way for us to avoid empty runs,” says the company’s spokesperson.
The spokesperson also added that “The prices in the discount campaign are not final because they are influenced by several factors.” Each customer thus receives a personalized offer.
Photo credits: Jimmy + Flickr/ Girteka Official LinkedIn Page