ACT International, Sereni and AsterX are the Ambassadors of the Antwerp Gazelles – Companies
Trends publishes every year the ranking of the fastest tasks in the country, the Trends Gazelles. This week we arrived in the province of Antwerp. The star performers are ACT International, Sereni and AsterX, each in their category. Trends appoints hen as Ambassadors of the Antwerp Gazelles, edition 2022.
For the 21st year in a row, Trends ranks the fastest companies under the ‘Trends Gazellen’ label. We do the rounds of the Flemish provinces. This week it’s Antwerp’s turn. Via the links in the blue box you can view the ranking for the three distinct categories: large, dynamic and small companies.
The links also give you more information about the methodology of the Trends Gazelles. The principle is simple: the faster the company grows, the higher it ranks. The fastest growth is number 1. We measure growth on the basis of three accounting items: added value, cash flow and number of employees, over a period of five years. The current edition of the Trends Gazellen dates from the period 2016-2020. We reduce the result of the to 1 score. That score determines the place in the ranking.
The number 1 in the ranking is given the honorary title of ‘Ambassador of the Trends Gazelles’, but not always. An Ambassador must meet conditions, operational independence. The company must have realized its growth on its own, not with the help of a parent company, for example. That is why a subsidiary of a foreign multinational cannot become an Ambassador. That’s why we sometimes have to go down a lot in the ranking to find a Gazelle that meets all the conditions to become an Ambassador.
The Ambassadors of Antwerp: ACT International, Sereni and AsterX
That is certainly the case for the Ambassador in the category of large companies, ACT International† The Antwerp transport company specialized in container transport is number 3 in the ranking. Founded in 2011, the company of CEO Mehmet Gülüser, a Belgian with Turkish roots, has grown and grown. After driving for several years with second-hand equipment, he bought his first four new tractors in 2014. In 2022 the fleet consists of more than 200 tractor units and 280 container chassis. “In the early years of ACT International, West Flemish Turbo’s Hoet was just about the only tractor supplier that gave us confidence,” says Mehmet Gülüser. We offer our customers daily container transport – both ADR and non-ADR – between the ports of Antwerp, Rotterdam and Zeebrugge and countries such as France, Germany, Spain and the Benelux. We make further wishes at the specific request of some major customers.”
250 tractors. That is the upper limit that the management of ACT International has set for the transport activities. The company has found a new challenge in logistics. last year ACT a 10-hectare Terminal Street in the Belle, a do-trade of storage company ADPO. Mehmet Gülüser has many plans for that site. “I dream of setting up a direct, multimodal connection with Turkey. We are in talks with Infrabel to reactivate some disused railway lines. Above that, we are going to build a new warehouse with an area of 12,000 m².”
Serenia is the Ambassador in the category companies companies. It is a group of 45 undertakers from all over Belgium. Sereni offers a total concept. People can go there not only for the funeral service, but also for everything that comes with a death, such as the administrative formalities with the government, banks, telecom providers and utility companies. “Our mission is to enrich the funeral again. A funeral should be a total experience and requires a personal and professional approach,” says Bram Coussement, CEO of Sereni. “The role of only the classic coffin maker is gradually being played out, today consists of the funeral care sector that offers a full service.”
The 45 undertakers have sold their business to Sereni, but continue to run their business, with a fairly large degree of autonomy. An entrepreneur today has to be versatile, and that’s where Sereni’s funeral is, according to Bram Coussement. “By joining our network, we can connect to our network, use ICT platforms and share know-how, expertise and entrepreneurs. That way they have more time and space to reach their customers with a personal approach. “
In the small business category, the Ambassador title goes to asterX, a large liquor dealer from Waarloos. The family business has four drinks shops, a wholesaler and about 300 catering establishments in Antwerp. “We try to find a healthy balance between the three activities,” says Ruben Devrieze, responsible for the stores. “We aim to get at least 40 percent of the total turnover from our stores. Private sales are not important for our cash flow, but mainly to keep up with the latest trends.”
This spread also proved to be an asset during the corona pandemic. “Our turnover in catering and events fell back to zero, our turnover in wholesale almost halved”, Christophe Geeraerts, responsible for wholesale and catering. “Fortunately, our stores were allowed to remain open. We did see an increase in turnover of about 20 percent.” Corona was not completely negative for AsterX, according to Ruben Devrieze. “We received a lot of new customers. The government had no problem with the number of customers per m² for us. We saw an increase in the period of spirits during that period. We have more than 500 different types in stock, also a lot exclusive products. That way we make a difference with the supermarkets.”
For the 21st year in a row, Trends ranks the fastest companies under the ‘Trends Gazellen’ label. We do the rounds of the Flemish provinces. This week it’s Antwerp’s turn. Via the links of the blue box you can view the ranking, and that for the three distinguished below: large, vertical and small companies. The principle is simple: the faster the company grows, the higher it ranks. The fastest growth is number 1. We measure growth on the basis of three accounting items: added value, cash flow and number of employees, over a period of five years. The current edition of the Trends Gazellen dates from the period 2016-2020. We reduce the result of the to 1 score. That score determines the place in the ranking. The number 1 in the ranking is given the honorary title of ‘Ambassador of the Trends Gazelles’, but not always. An Ambassador must meet conditions, operational independence. The company must have realized its growth on its own, not with the help of a parent company, for example. That is why a subsidiary of a foreign multinational cannot become an Ambassador. That’s why we sometimes have to go down a lot in the ranking to find a Gazelle that meets all the conditions. The Antwerp transport company specialized in container transport is number 3 in the ranking. Founded in 2011, the company of CEO Mehmet Gülüser, a Belgian with Turkish roots, has grown and grown. After driving for several years with second-hand equipment, he bought his first four new tractors in 2014. In 2022 the fleet consists of more than 200 tractor units and 280 container chassis. “In the early years of ACT International, West Flemish Turbo’s Hoet was just about the only tractor supplier that gave us confidence,” says Mehmet Gülüser. We offer our customers daily container transport – both ADR and non-ADR – between the ports of Antwerp, Rotterdam and Zeebrugge and countries such as France, Germany, Spain and the Benelux. At the specific request of a number of large customers, we will continue to operate.”250 tractors. That is the upper limit that the management of ACT International has set for the transport activities. The company has found a new challenge in logistics. last year ACT an Eindstraat of 10 hectares in the Belle, a do-trade of storage company ADPO. Mehmet Gülüser has many plans for that site. “I dream of establishing a direct, multimodal connection with Turkey. We are in talks with Infrabel to reactivate some disused railway lines. Above that, we are going to build a new warehouse with a surface area of 12,000 m².”Sereni is the Ambassador in the corporate category. It is a group of 45 funeral directors from all over Belgium. Sereni offers a total concept. People can go there not only for the funeral service. , but also for everything that comes with a death, such as the administrative formalities with the government, banks, telecom providers and utilities.” Our mission is to enrich the funeral again. A funeral must be a total experience and requires a personal and professional approach,” says Bram Coussement, CEO of Sereni. “The role of exclusively the classic box maker has gradually played out, today consists of professional entrepreneurs who offer a full service.” The 45 funeral directors have sold their company to Sereni, but continue to run their business, with a fairly large autonomy. Today, an entrepreneur must be polyvalent, and that is where Sereni’s funeral is, according to Bram Coussement. “By joining our network, we network to use ICT platforms and can share know-how, waiting and entrepreneurial expertise. That way they have more time and space to reach their customers with a personal approach. “In the small companies category, the Ambassador title goes to AsterX, a large drinks merchant from Waarloos. The family business has four drinks shops, a wholesaler and about 300 catering businesses in Antwerp. “We try to find a healthy balance between the three activities”. says Ruben Devrieze, responsible for the stores: “We aim to get at least 40 percent of the total turnover from our stores. Private sales are not important for our cash flow, but mainly to keep up with the latest trends.” This spread also proved to be an asset during the corona pandemic. “Our turnover in catering and events fell back to zero, our turnover in wholesale almost halved” , Christophe Geeraerts, responsible for wholesale and catering.” Fortunately, our stores were allowed to remain open. We did see an increase in turnover of about 20 percent.” Corona was not entirely negative for AsterX, says Ruben Devrieze. “We received a lot of new customers. The government had no problem with the number of customers per m² us. We saw an increase in the spirits period during that period. We have more than 500 different types in stock, including many exclusive products. In this way we make the difference with the supermarkets.”