What PESA does

PESA (legal name Port-franc et Entrepôts de Lausanne-Chavornay S.A.) is a Swiss-licensed freight forwarder and customs broker founded in 1973 and headquartered in Chavornay. Since 2010 it has operated as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Planzer Holding AG; a second entity, PESA AG, was established in 2019 to serve German-speaking Switzerland. The company runs eleven sites across Switzerland, Germany, and France, eight of which are positioned at Swiss customs border posts. Its service portfolio comprises three integrated lines: customs brokerage (import, export, EU clearance, Intrastat, fiscal representation, ATA carnet, and authorised consignee/consignor status under AEO certification); international transport by road, rail, air, sea, and special modes (express, oversized, temperature-controlled, fair/art logistics); and bonded warehousing on approximately 26,000 m² of space in Chavornay, including Open Customs Warehouse (OCW) facilities with deferred duty and VAT.

Underlying technology is digitised but workflow-based rather than AI-driven: PESA submits customs declarations via a direct electronic interface to Swiss customs systems (NCTS, e-dec), eliminating manual paperwork for recurring cross-border shippers. The company owns a rail connection to the TERCO intermodal terminal at Chavornay with a 38-tonne container stacker, enabling roughly 60% of goods to move by rail. Pricing follows SPEDLOGSWISS general conditions, with fuel and congestion surcharges indexed to ASTAG and diesel benchmarks. Revenue is generated through per-declaration customs fees, per-shipment transport charges, and storage/handling fees at the Chavornay warehouse. Customers are importers, exporters, freight shippers, and bonded-storage users, served via direct sales at physical sites, phone, and an online contact form, with the inside sales and field representative teams routed to the appropriate location. No external investors, public listing, or revenue disclosures are evidenced; operations remain integrated within the Planzer Group.

Name

PESA

Legal name

Port-franc et Entrepôts de Lausanne-Chavornay S.A.

Website

https://pesa.global

Company type

Private

Founded year

1973

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

PESA is a Swiss freight forwarder and customs broker, wholly owned by Planzer Holding AG, providing customs clearance at eight border posts, multimodal international transport, and bonded warehousing from eleven sites across Switzerland, Germany, and France.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Freight Forwarding and Logistics Services

NAICS

Couriers and Express Delivery Services (4921), Couriers and Express Delivery Services (492110), Couriers and Messengers (492), Nonscheduled Chartered Freight Air Transportation (481212)

SIC

Arrangement Of Transportation Of Freight & Cargo (4731), Trucking & Courier Services (No Air) (4210), Air Courier Services (4513)

akta.pro primary industry

Customs Consulting & Brokerage Outsourcing (Managed Brokerage, Brokerage Operations) (TLACAFAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Cross-Border Freight Brokerage (USMCA/EU, etc.) (TLADAMAN), Cross-Border Intermodal (Customs-in-Transit/Transit Regimes) Forwarding (TLACAEAJ)

Keywords

• Freight forwarding services
• Customs clearance services
• Bonded warehousing
• International logistics
• Multimodal transport

Headquarters

HQ city

Chavornay

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices11 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Customs Clearance Services: Fee-based customs declaration services including import customs clearance, export customs clearance, EU customs clearance (Da, Ea, EDO), Intrastat declarations, and fiscal representation. Billed per declaration or on a retainer basis for regular clients.
2. International Transport Services: Land (road and rail), air freight, and sea freight transport services. Charged per shipment based on weight, volume, destination, and transport mode. Includes express/courier services, special transport (oversized, heavy, temperature-controlled), and fair/art transport.
3. Customs Warehouse & Bonded Storage: Block storage, bulk storage, palletised and racked stock on approximately 26,000 m² of bonded warehouse space. Includes order picking and co-packing services. Revenue is generated through storage fees and handling/picking charges.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

PESA provides integrated cross-border logistics for Swiss and international trade, combining customs brokerage at eight Swiss customs posts, freight forwarding across land (road/rail), air, sea, and special transport modes, and approximately 26,000 m² of bonded and non-bonded warehousing with order picking and co-packing. Services are delivered from eleven sites in Switzerland, Germany, and France, supported by a digital interface to Swiss customs systems (NCTS, e-dec) for recurring shippers.

Product overview

PESA operates as a logistics and customs services provider offering an integrated suite of transport (land, air, sea, special), customs clearance (import, export, via interface), and warehousing services (~26,000 m²). The core offering is built around customs brokerage at eight Swiss border posts paired with international freight forwarding across all transport modes. The Customs Clearance via Interface service provides digital connectivity to Swiss customs systems for recurring shippers. Warehousing includes bonded storage and Open Customs Warehouse (OCW) facilities for duty-deferred storage. Special transport covers express, oversized, heavy-lift, and temperature-controlled shipments. All services are delivered from eleven Swiss and border locations as part of the Planzer Group.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Customs Clearance End-to-end customs brokerage at eight Swiss customs posts, covering import clearance, export clearance, EU declarations, Intrastat filings, fiscal representation, ATA carnets, and authorised consignee (Da) / consignor (Ea) services for businesses trading goods across the Swiss border.
• Customs Clearance via Interface Digital customs clearance service providing a direct system-to-system electronic interface with Swiss customs (NCTS, e-dec) for regular cross-border shippers, enabling sustainable, paperless recurring declarations without manual form submission.
• Land Transport Road and rail freight services offering groupage, partial loads, and full loads to all EU capitals, the UK, and Eastern Europe, with daily line haulages and a national Swiss parcel and network distribution reach. Leverages direct connection to the TERCO rail terminal at Chavornay.
• Air Transport Air freight consolidation and individual shipment services from Geneva, Zurich, and Basel-Mulhouse airports daily, including express services and off-airport warehousing solutions, backed by IATA membership.
• Sea Transport Full container loads (FCL), less than container loads (LCL), and conventional sea freight with own intermodal transfer terminal at Chavornay (road-rail-maritime) using a 38-tonne container stacker, supported by ALU membership across Asia.
• Special Transport Express transport, courier services, over-length and heavy-weight shipments, temperature-controlled goods, overnight European services, and trade fair and art exhibition logistics including on-site security during events.
• Customs Warehouse / Warehousing Approximately 26,000 m² of bonded and non-bonded storage at Chavornay offering block, bulk, palletised, and racked stock; Open Customs Warehouse (OCW/EDO) status enables duty- and VAT-deferred storage until sale or export, with order picking and co-packing services.

Quantifiable outcome

• 60% of goods transported via rail, reducing carbon footprint compared to road-only transport
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• SPEDLOGSWISS (Association of Swiss Freight Forwarding and Logistics Companies)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPESA is a member of SPEDLOGSWISS, the Association of Swiss Freight Forwarding and Logistics Companies. The company works exclusively on the basis of SPEDLOGSWISS general conditions (CG SPEDLOGSWISS). Membership provides industry representation, advocacy, and professional standards alignment.
• IATA (International Air Transport Association)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPESA is a member of IATA, enabling it to handle air freight consolidation and individual shipments, and guaranteeing efficient and safe air transport operations to global destinations.
• ALU (Asian Logistics Umbrella)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPESA is a member of the Asian Logistics Umbrella (ALU), providing it with a network for sea freight operations throughout Asia and supporting global freight needs worldwide.
• WFO (World Freight Organisation)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPESA is a member of WFO (World Freight Organisation), providing it with global freight network coverage for international shipping across all continents.
• TERCOcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTERCO is the intermodal transshipment terminal at Chavornay that PESA uses for combined road-rail-sea transport. PESA has its own rail connection to TERCO, enabling 60% of goods to travel by rail and optimising customers' ecological balance.
• Planzer GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPESA Port-franc et Entrepôts de Lausanne-Chavornay S.A. was acquired by the Planzer Group in 2010. In 2019, PESA AG was established on the basis of Team Transport. PESA operates as a subsidiary within the Planzer Group, sharing resources, IT infrastructure, and brand family. The privacy statement identifies Planzer Transport AG as the data controller for pesa.global.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Kühne+Nagel: Swiss-headquartered global freight forwarder and customs broker with integrated land, air, sea and contract logistics. Comparable in customs brokerage and international forwarding but vastly larger and globally diversified.
• DHL Global Forwarding: World's largest air and ocean freight forwarder with full customs brokerage capabilities. Competes with PESA on international forwarding and customs but at global enterprise scale.
• Hellmann Worldwide Logistics: German-headquartered global freight forwarder offering road, air, sea and customs services. Comparable service portfolio to PESA but with significantly larger international footprint.
• DACHSER: German family-owned logistics provider with European road transport, air and sea forwarding plus customs and warehousing. Comparable integrated forwarder with similar European focus.
• Rhenus Logistics: German-headquartered multimodal logistics provider offering freight forwarding, customs services and contract logistics. Broader scale than PESA but overlapping customs and warehousing competencies.
• DSV A/S: Global freight forwarder that absorbed Panalpina (Swiss-origin) and operates air, sea and road forwarding plus customs services across Europe. Closest large-cap analog to PESA's customs-plus-forwarding model.
• Gebrüder Weiss: Austrian family-owned logistics provider with land, air, sea forwarding, customs and warehousing across Europe. Comparable mid-cap forwarder with similar customs and warehousing integration.

Direct peers

• Ziegler Group: Swiss-Belgian freight forwarder with road, air, sea and customs services across Europe. Direct peer in customs brokerage and integrated forwarding for cross-border trade.
• Galliker Transport & Logistics: Family-owned Swiss logistics company providing national and international transport, warehousing and customs services. Closely comparable mid-size Swiss competitor with bonded storage capabilities.
• Fracht AG: Swiss freight forwarder offering land, air and sea transport plus customs clearance and project logistics. Direct mid-market peer to PESA with similar Swiss-centric service mix and customer profile.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about PESA