Maersk will retire the brands Hamburg Süd and Sealand as well as more recently acquired brands that have joined the group.

Maersk

Image source: Hamburg Süd

The Danish shipping group said that its aim is to unify its brands and structure. Hamburg Süd, which was acquired in 2017, and Sealand will be integrated into the Maersk brand, as will Senator and LF Logistics.

“We believe that by integrating these into the Maersk brand, we will be able to ease your logistical difficulties, whilst also offering you more variety, ease, and connectivity than ever before, all under one roof,” said Maersk in a customer advisory.

Each brand in different geographies will follow its own tailored timeline to transition into the Maersk brand. The company added that the timelines are being finalised.

It added: “We see an opportunity to provide an even greater, simpler integrated logistics offering for our customers. Our multi-brand approach has served us well over the years and all our brands have been successful in meeting the needs of customers. However, we know that having multiple brands creates complexity for our customers. Now is the right time to leap further into a unified brand to provide our customers with truly integrated logistics. We believe that this is how we will continue to best meet all your needs.”

The move follows last week’s announcement that Maersk and MSC will disband the 2M alliance in 2025. They said: “MSC and Maersk recognise that much has changed since the two companies signed the 10-year agreement in 2015. Discontinuing the 2M alliance paves the way for both companies to continue to pursue their individual strategies.”

According to industry analyst Drewry, the two companies have been on different growth paths for some time. MSC has been more active in the second-hand and charter markets, as well as splurging on new orders, while Maersk has focused on its vertical integration strategy.

It leaves Maersk in a tight spot, added Drewry, as the Danish carrier is too big to join an existing alliance and too small to go it alone. Some BCO clients of Drewry have said that after contract talks, they think that the company is suffering from something of an identity crisis, unable to express what the integration strategy means in reality.

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