XPO Logistics Buys Dentressangle - Logistics Companies: Yes, Be Afraid

I have been covering XPO logistics for a  very long time on this blog.  In that coverage I have evolved my thought from thinking it was just another aggregator that will fail to it being just a big final mile player to finally saying, "watch out", Bradley Jacobs is coming after you.

Yesterday was the deal of the year (in an early year) showing that logistics companies should fear what is going on at XPO.  Yesterday, XPO purchased the French company Dentressangle in a deal worth $3.56bl.  Now, XPO is clearly a global powerhouse.

At first it looked like XPO was going to be just another big brokerage house. Then came the acquisition of 3PD and rebranding to XPO Final Mile which said they were going to own the delivery from the manufacturer (through brokerage) to your home (through final mile).  The next big acquisition in my mind was that of Pacer which immediately made XPO a leader in intermodal.

Now, with the acquisition of Dentressangle they have become truly a global powerhouse.  If you are a leader of a global supply chain you absolutely cannot ignore doing business with XPO.  The holy grail has been to find a supplier who can do "end to end" supply chain management for your global supply chain and with XPO you most likely have that now.

In all my writings on XPO logistics (which go back to November 19, 2013) I have said they are a force to be reckoned with and now that is clearly come to life.

In full disclosure, I also do business with XPO and I will tell you that the hype is reality.  This is a well run, disciplined and well led / well financed company.  Trust me - you will do business with XPO at some point.