COLI Logistics GmbH – Hamburg, Germany Interview with
Mr. Patrick Zernikow Managing Director
First of all, Patrick, tell us why you got into shipping in the first place and how you ended up as MD of COLI Logistics GmbH? Due to the fact that my grandfather was a shipowner, I got in touch with the shipping business very early, actually from the time I was a child. Shipping was always a topic in our family. When I was a child, my father and I went to the port of Bremerhaven and could get very close to the ships. In those days, it was still possible, because it was before 9/11. Even though shipping and logistics is part of my daily life, for me it is still unbelievable how such big ships can keep afloat and carry so much cargo. After several years working for another freight forwarder and doing some port consulting afterwards, the owner of COLI Group asked me to join COLI in order to set up the logistics division as a service addition of the COLI Group. So now we have brokerage, carrier and logistics under one umbrella.
Who are COLI Logistics today? Who are the owners of the group, and what is the main activity that you perform in shipping? Are you a project freight forwarder, broker, shipping agent or all of the above? COLI offers brokerage, own operated vessels and logistics services under one umbrella. I’m responsible for 90