Spring 2008 Issue > Crown Expands into Barcelona, Dar es Salaam and Phnom Penh
Crown Expands into Barcelona, Spain; Dar es Salaam, Tanzania and Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Crown Barcelona, Spain
With a population of 1.7 million people, Barcelona is a leading economic center in Southern Europe. It is the capital of Catalonia, an important cultural center and a major tourist destination with a rich cultural heritage.
To support many of the major multinational companies that have a presence in Barcelona, Crown’s first objective is to expand its offering in household goods shipping, global mobility and records management services. This investment by Crown Barcelona also creates new jobs for the region which further demonstrates Crown’s commitment to actively supporting the communities in which it operates.
Crown Barcelona will be managed by René Wisse, a Dutch national, who has been living in Barcelona for 10 years. Wisse has over eight years of industry experience and speaks Dutch, English, Spanish, Catalan and German fluently.
Barcelona is home to one of Europe’s major seaports, at the Costa de Barcelona, on the northeast coast of Spain, and the second largest airport in the country, making it a convenient and strategic location for business. Its main industries are textile, chemical, pharmaceutical, automotive, logistics and tourism. The Spanish Mediterranean coast is home to retirees from the UK, Germany, the Netherlands and the rest of Europe.
"Rene Wisse has a background in our industry and a solid knowledge of Barcelona and Catalonia and, with the support of our team in Madrid, is ready to handle any services for multinationals, private clients, including retirees, and Crown’s worldwide offices alike. The first two months of trading has shown that there are opportunities to serve a wide range of clients and the team at Crown Spain is looking forward to a very successful year."
Crown Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Crown Tanzania is located in Dar es Salaam, the commercial capital of the country. Tanzania is becoming more recognizable throughout the world and numerous international groups in the mining, agricultural, gas and oil, insurance, tourism and service industries are increasing their staff and presence in the country. There is a large nongovernmental organization base, in the country, with a slant toward the medical field for the prevention of malaria and AIDS, and a significant amount of U.S. funding is being directed into the region.
Crown’s operation will be overseen by country manager Simon Maitland. Following a career in the military, Maitland joined an international removals company in 1998. As operations manager, he had responsibility for international and local moves within Botswana, and also to South Africa, Malawi, Zambia, Namibia and Angola.
Maitland said, "Crown will begin providing relocation services for a very large expatriate community with over 50 diplomatic embassies and missions, including USAID, DFID, the U.S. Peace Corps and most of the United Nations organisations. Schooling, housing and residential maintenance service facilities are limited so Crown will fill the needs of expatriates by providing full global mobility services (GMS)."
Tanzania is the largest country in East Africa -- nearly a million square kilometers (386,109 square miles) blessed with natural beauty and much wildlife. After nearly four decades of socialism, the country is now a fully integrated democratic society moving toward being one of Africa’s more vibrant economies.
Crown Phnom Penh, Cambodia
This new office was officially opened on September 1, 2007 and is run by Michael Grisaffi, corporate services manager, operating within the purview of John Perry, general manager for Crown, Thailand. Grisaffi has more than 10 years of international experience in Southeast Asia and is familiar with the challenges that Crown customers will face when settling in Cambodia.
A major focus for this branch is the large number of nongovernmental organizations present in the country. Crown Cambodia has a 500-square-meter (almost 5,400 square feet) warehouse located five kilometres (approximately three miles) from Phnom Penh international airport. The branch will eventually expand its reach to the areas of Siem Reap and Sihanoukville in the coming months.
Jim Thompson, chairman of Crown Worldwide, commented on Crown’s presence in Phnom Penh, "Cambodia is a country that has had a difficult past but is now very stable. The rate of growth has been very encouraging as more and more foreign investors see the potential of the country. Crown is now well established in Cambodia and able to serve the entire country. We plan to steadily build our operations from our head office in Phnom Penh to serve the companies establishing new operations throughout the country. We also plan to lend our support to the many needy people who are trying to build better lives."
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