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Global logistics provider Damco and retailer Coop Denmark have signed a three-year partnership agreement appointing Damco as Coop Denmark’s sole logistics partner for inbound shipments from Asia, starting 1 May 2015.

Damco has managed a significant part of Coop’s inbound flows from Asia since 2009, and now both parties have agreed to take the partnership to the next level, Damco said in a press release.

'Coop decided on an exclusive arrangement with Damco in order to drive strategic development – supported by Damco’s dedicated Supply Chain Development team – and to capitalise on synergies obtained from sharing business strategies and long-term planning,' it said.

“We believe that Coop’s strategic and long term view on their supply chain priorities fits very well with what Damco does best. Having partnered with some of the world’s largest and most successful retailers over many years gives us the confidence that we can assist Coop in fulfilling their strategic objectives in the years to come”, said Mads Drejer, chief commercial officer, Damco Nordics.

The new contract will include integrated supply chain management and advanced EDI connectivity supported by strong key account management. One of the first benefits that Damco aims to deliver is improved freight control in key parts of Coop’s Asian supply chain, the press release said.

“For the last six years, Damco has proved to be an efficient and reliable logistics partner for Coop,” said Michael Frølich, senior supply chain manager, Coop Denmark. “By appointing Damco as sole logistics provider, we can take a more strategic approach to optimising our inbound supply chain with the aim of delivering bottom-line savings for Coop Denmark.”

Damco, whose headquarters are in the Netherlands, specialises in delivering customised freight forwarding and supply chain solutions. The company has more than 300 offices in over 100 countries and employs over 11,000 people. In 2014, Damco had a net turnover of US$3.2bn, managed 2.9m TEU of ocean freight and supply chain management volumes, and air-freighted 190,000 tonnes. Damco is part of the Maersk Group.

Coop is one of Denmark’s leading grocery retailer. Its stores operate under the Kvickly, SuperBrugsen, Dagli’Brugsen, LokalBrugsen, Irma, fakta, coop.dk and irma.dk banners. These stores comprise 1,200 outlets throughout Denmark with 36,000 employees.