As Bloomberg reports, citing sources familiar with the matter, the owner family is working with Morgan Stanley to gauge interest from potential investors. The Bonn-based DHL Group and the US-based Cencora Inc. are among the potential buyers. The company’s value in a sale could be around €1 billion. However, talks are still in the early stages, and there is no certainty that a deal will be reached.
The Walden Group was founded by Marcel Baudry in 1951 as a specialist logistics provider for pharmaceuticals and has steadily expanded through strategic acquisitions. These include Ciblex (2014), Movianto (2020), and Relais Colis (2022).
Under the leadership of Stéphane Baudry, the founder’s grandson, Walden is now active in several European countries, including France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Great Britain, Belgium, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, and Poland.
The French group consists of several operating companies specializing in logistics and transport solutions for the pharmaceutical and healthcare sectors, including Ciblex Express, Eurotranspharma – the European specialist in last-mile healthcare transport, Transpharma International, Movianto, and Pharma Pilot. In 2022, the group generated revenue of €2.6 billion.
Significance of the Walden acquisition for DHL
The DHL Group is increasingly focusing on the pharmaceutical market as a growth driver and plans to increase its total revenue to over €120 billion by 2030.
The potential acquisition of the Walden Group, which has an established network in more than ten European countries, would significantly strengthen DHL’s position in the pharmaceutical logistics market in Europe and provide direct access to specialized pharmaceutical logistics capacities. Furthermore, the acquisition would allow DHL to close existing gaps in its network and expand its market share in pharmaceutical distribution.
While DHL was approached for comment, a spokesperson told the German transport and logistics newspaper DVZ that the company “generally does not comment on such market speculation.”
The Walden Group has not yet responded to a request for comment.