Cargo Logistics
Cargo Logistics is an independent UK freight forwarder founded in 1994 providing multi-modal road, sea, and air freight plus in-house customs clearance for ambient and temperature-controlled cargo, with specialist services in Gibraltar trade, European plant logistics, and refrigerated transport across the UK, Europe, and globally.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1994
- HeadquartersKnaresborough, United Kingdom
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Cargo Logistics does
Cargo Logistics is an independent UK freight forwarder headquartered in Knaresborough, North Yorkshire, with a secondary operations site in Poole (Cargo Refrigeration LTD). Founded in 1994 as a specialist in refrigerated and temperature-controlled transport, the company has since expanded into a full multi-modal offering spanning European road freight (full load, groupage 1-12 pallets, express 12-36 hours), global sea freight (FCL, LCL, cross-trade, project cargo), and worldwide air freight (standard, AOG priority, Antonov/747 chartering). It also operates an in-house customs clearance team covering Import/Export declarations, IPAFFS notifications, NCTS and NATO 302 transit documentation, ATA Carnets, and specialized regimes for plants (CITES), food (POAO/ABP/HRFNAO), and military/dangerous goods shipments.
The business layers three distinct specializations on top of its multi-modal core: scheduled Gibraltar groupage (twice-weekly export, weekly import) with bundled Spanish and UK customs handling; temperature-controlled logistics formalized through the Cargo Refrigeration LTD subsidiary; and plant transportation across eight European countries including Spain, Portugal, Italy, France, Germany, Poland, Belgium, and the Netherlands. Operational technology consists of live delivery-tracking links, automated email update notifications, and regulatory workflow integrations (IPAFFS, NCTS) rather than proprietary AI/ML systems. The company holds BIFA membership and ISO 9001:2015 and ISO 22000:2018 certifications.
Cargo Logistics generates revenue via transactional fees on booked shipments (road, sea, air) and professional services fees on customs clearance work. Pricing is fully quote-based with no published rates; customers request quotes via a website contact form and are served by dedicated account managers who coordinate the end-to-end job from collection to delivery. Its go-to-market is sales-led with direct enterprise engagement across five primary use-case segments (ambient/refrigerated shippers, importers/exporters needing customs, plant operators, Gibraltar trade customers, and food/perishable traders). The company is privately held with no disclosed institutional funding, with reported scale characterized qualitatively as a 'multi-million pound business' across an 11-50 employee footprint.
Cargo Logistics firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Cargo Logistics
- Legal name
- Cargo Logistics LTD
- Website
- https://cargo-logistics.co.uk
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1994
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Cargo Logistics is an independent UK freight forwarder founded in 1994 providing multi-modal road, sea, and air freight plus in-house customs clearance for ambient and temperature-controlled cargo, with specialist services in Gibraltar trade, European plant logistics, and refrigerated transport across the UK, Europe, and globally.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Cargo Logistics industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Freight Forwarding Services
- NAICS
- Freight Transportation Arrangement (48851)
- SIC
- Arrangement Of Transportation Of Freight & Cargo (4731)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Project Cargo Logistics & Transport Management (TLADAGAB)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Customs Brokerage for Ocean Shipments (Import/Export Clearance) (TLACABAG), Trade Compliance & Ocean Regulatory Services (Sanctions/Export Controls) (TLACABAL)
Keywords
Where Cargo Logistics is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Knaresborough
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices2 records
Markets served
Cargo Logistics business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Road Freight Services: Full load, part load, groupage (1 carton to 12 pallets), and express delivery services across Europe. Services include tautliner trailers and refrigerated trailers with delivery coverage of majority of Europe within 12-36 hours for express shipments.
- Sea Freight Services: Full container loads (FCL), less than container loads (LCL), cross-trade movements, temperature-controlled transport, warehousing, customs handling, project cargo, and heavy lifting services. Shipping to global markets through global agency network and shipping line relations.
- Air Freight Services: Worldwide air freight booking and management, road-to-airport and airport-to-road transport, Aircraft On Ground (AOG) priority service, and chartering services for abnormal loads (Antonov or 747 aircraft).
- Customs Clearance Services: Full Import & Export customs clearance for plants, food (POAO/ABP/HRFNAO), dangerous goods, transit shipments, and ATA Carnet shipments. Specialist experience in Authorised Use, Customs Warehousing, IPAFFS/SPS, Temporary Admission, Inward/Outward processing, CITES, Military, and Products under Licence.
- Gibraltar Specialist Services: Twice weekly scheduled export groupage service to Gibraltar and once weekly import groupage service. Includes Spanish and UK customs clearing on behalf of customers.
- Specialist Plant Logistics: Transportation of plants throughout Europe including Spain, Portugal, Italy, France, Germany, Poland, Belgium, and Netherlands. Covers full, part, and oversized loads using tautliner or refrigerated trailers. Includes customs clearance and IPAFFS notification handling.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels2 records
Cargo Logistics product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Cargo Logistics is an independent freight forwarder providing multi-modal international logistics solutions for ambient and refrigerated cargo. Core offerings span road freight (full load, groupage, express across Europe), sea freight (FCL, LCL, cross-trade), and air freight (standard, AOG, chartering), complemented by in-house customs clearance, temperature-controlled transport, and specialist services for Gibraltar trade and plant logistics.
Product overview
Cargo Logistics operates as an independent freight forwarder providing international logistics solutions for ambient and refrigerated cargo. The core offering is a multi-modal transport platform comprising Road Freight (full loads, groupage, express), Sea Freight (FCL, LCL, cross-trade), Air Freight (standard, AOG, chartering), and Customs Services. These are supplemented by specialized services for Refrigerated/Temperature Controlled goods, Plants logistics, and Gibraltar-specific operations. The company manages logistics from collection to delivery through dedicated account managers, offering both ambient and temperature-controlled capabilities.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Road Freight European road transportation service offering full load, groupage (1-12 pallets), and express delivery (12-36 hours across Europe) using tautliner trailers and flat-beds, for businesses shipping ambient and refrigerated cargo.
- Sea Freight International ocean freight service providing FCL (Full Container Loads), LCL (Less than Container Loads), and cross-trade shipping with temperature-controlled transport, warehousing, customs handling, and project cargo/heavy lifting capabilities, shipping to global markets worldwide.
- Air Freight Worldwide air freight solutions including standard air freight, Aircraft On Ground (AOG) priority service, and chartering for abnormal loads using Antonov or 747 aircraft.
- Customs Services Full import and export customs clearance service covering plants (including CITES), food (POAO/ABP/HRFNAO), dangerous goods, transit shipments, and ATA Carnet shipments, with handling of NCTS and NATO 302 transit documentation.
- Refrigerated and Temperature Controlled Logistics Specialist temperature-controlled logistics service for refrigerated goods offering full trailer loads, part loads, and refrigerated vans with additional documentation support, primarily for food and perishable goods shippers.
- Plants Logistics Specialized plant transportation service covering full, part, and oversized loads throughout Europe using tautliner or refrigerated trailers, with customs clearance and IPAFFS notification handling, for nurseries and plant distributors.
- Gibraltar Specialist Services Specialist Gibraltar logistics service with twice-weekly scheduled export groupage and once-weekly import groupage, handling Gibraltar, Spanish, and UK customs clearing for businesses trading with Gibraltar.
Quantifiable outcome
- Twice weekly scheduled export groupage service to Gibraltar; once weekly import groupage service
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Cargo Logistics
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
Cargo Logistics technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature6 records
Cargo Logistics partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- British International Freight Association (BIFA)coreMembership organization representing UK International freight services industry. BIFA membership provides guarantee that Cargo Logistics trades under nationally accepted Standard Trading Conditions backed by the insurance sector.
- Shipping Lines (Global Network)coreThrough global agency network and relationships with shipping lines, Cargo Logistics provides truly global sea freight coverage including FCL, LCL, and cross-trade movements worldwide.
- Airlines (Worldwide)coreCargo Logistics has extensive agreed rates with airlines worldwide for air freight booking and management services, ensuring high quality service at competitive costs.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Cargo Logistics competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Expeditors International: US-headquartered global logistics provider focused on air and ocean freight forwarding with customs brokerage. Competes with Cargo Logistics in international air and sea freight segments.
- Kuehne+Nagel: One of the world's largest freight forwarders offering road, sea, and air services globally. Competes with Cargo Logistics for general freight customers but operates at vastly larger scale with full multi-modal capabilities.
- DHL Global Forwarding: Global freight forwarding arm of Deutsche Post DHL, offering air, ocean, and road freight plus customs services. Directly comparable service portfolio to Cargo Logistics' multi-modal offering.
- Yusen Logistics: Global logistics provider offering freight forwarding, contract logistics, and supply chain solutions across road, sea, and air. Overlaps with Cargo Logistics' full multi-modal service portfolio.
- Rhenus Logistics: European-headquartered logistics group offering freight forwarding across all modes plus customs and contract logistics. Comparable multi-modal service breadth with strong European road presence like Cargo Logistics.
- Panalpina (DSV): Now part of DSV, Panalpina was a Swiss-based forwarder with strong air freight and perishables expertise. The combined DSV entity competes with Cargo Logistics in air freight and refrigerated logistics.
Direct peers
- Allport Cargo Services: Mid-sized independent freight forwarder with UK and European presence offering air, sea, road freight and customs clearance. Closely comparable in business model and target customer segment to Cargo Logistics.
- Davies Turner: UK-headquartered independent freight forwarder offering road, sea, air, and customs services. Closely comparable to Cargo Logistics in scale, ownership structure (privately held, family-influenced), and multi-modal service mix.
Regional players
- Wincanton: UK-focused logistics and supply chain provider offering transport, warehousing, and specialist services. Comparable as a UK-rooted mid-sized logistics operator, though more focused on contract logistics than freight forwarding.
Emerging players
- Streamline Shipping Group: Independent UK freight forwarder offering ocean, air, and road freight with customs brokerage. Closely comparable in service mix and target customer base to Cargo Logistics' multi-modal offering.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Cargo Logistics social profiles
Digital presenceCargo Logistics compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance3 records
Cargo Logistics financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Cargo Logistics leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Cargo Logistics subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Cargo Logistics funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Cargo Logistics M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Cargo Logistics
What does Cargo Logistics do?
Cargo Logistics is an independent freight forwarder providing multi-modal international logistics solutions for ambient and refrigerated cargo. Core offerings span road freight (full load, groupage, express across Europe), sea freight (FCL, LCL, cross-trade), and air freight (standard, AOG, chartering), complemented by in-house customs clearance, temperature-controlled transport, and specialist services for Gibraltar trade and plant logistics.
Is Cargo Logistics a public or private company?
Cargo Logistics is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Cargo Logistics founded?
Cargo Logistics was founded in 1994. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Cargo Logistics based?
Cargo Logistics is headquartered in Knaresborough, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Cargo Logistics make money?
Six revenue lines are on record. Road Freight Services are the primary driver. The others are sea Freight Services, air Freight Services, customs Clearance Services, gibraltar Specialist Services and specialist Plant Logistics.
Who are Cargo Logistics's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Expeditors International, Kuehne+Nagel, DHL Global Forwarding, Yusen Logistics, Rhenus Logistics and Panalpina (DSV). Direct peers are Allport Cargo Services and Davies Turner. Wincanton is listed as a regional player. Streamline Shipping Group is listed as an emerging player.
Does Cargo Logistics have an API?
No public API is recorded for Cargo Logistics.
What industry is Cargo Logistics in?
Cargo Logistics's product category is Freight Forwarding Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is TLADAGAB, Project Cargo Logistics & Transport Management, with a secondary code of TLACABAG, Customs Brokerage for Ocean Shipments (Import/Export Clearance). Its NAICS code is 48851 and its SIC code is 4731.