DK making headway in freight industry

“I used to deliver cargo from a taxi five years ago when I started providing freight services. ”These were the sentiments of founder and managing director (MD) of DK Freight Services, Daniel Haufiku.

The freight company is 100% Namibian-owned, and has the vision to be the leading agency for customs clearance and freight services in Namibia.

Haufiku said this vision has helped them expand and evolve their services to ensure excellence in service delivery. “We provide an extensive and diverse stream of logistics, import and export services for both business and domestic purposes. Having worked in the import and export industry before, I saw the gap in service delivery, and decided to take on the challenge to bring change. I have always wanted to be a businessman, an active participant in the economy, as well as play a role in poverty alleviation through job creation,” he explained.

DK Freight Services has been operating since 2014, offering customs clearance services to ease the hurdles and tussle of customs documentation, import and export taxation procedures, airline/port liaison, compliance advice and all paperwork involved for any sea, road or air consignments.

As a freight-forwarding agency, the company also offers effective and efficient freight services with consolidation on all major trade routes via sea, road or air in Namibia. The MD said his company’s strong network and partnerships with reputable international airlines and sea lines enable them to deliver fast and safe services.

“We started with no vehicles to deliver the clients’ cargo, no office space, and just two employees; consequently outsourcing most of our work to other companies. However, driven to deliver excellent service, we pushed and worked hard to expand our operations to the Noordoewer border post, Trans-Kalahari border post and the Walvis Bay harbour as well as our main office at Hosea Kutako International Airport,” the MD added.

This growth has made it possible for the freight services company to secure its own delivery vehicles, and employ more staff members and interns. Haufiku noted that it was not an easy journey as he faced the common entrepreneurial challenges like being young, and sometimes race stereotyping. Another challenge was entering an industry that has world-renowned freight service providers, in addition to clearing agencies which constantly needed one to ascertain their credibility and ability to deliver the same service better.

“Besides that, the industry we operate in sees businesses like DK Freight Services being faced with challenges such as ever-increasing fuel prices, skills shortages, lack of or low maintenance of infrastructure like roads and railway, and the high costs of new technologies and systems. We continued to work hard, and now we have global partnerships in the import and export industry, ensuring that our clients enjoy seamless services. We aim to continually serve our clients to the best of our ability, as well as contribute to the economic development of the country,” he added.

Haufiku also urged the youth to be driven, and to bring about the change that they want to see. “We live in a country where we depend so much on government or jobs to actually pitch up, but we don’t realise that if you change your way of thinking, you can bring change to yourself and to the country as a whole.”

One of the employees at DK Freight Services, Goodman Mvulo, who is also one of the longest-serving employees, said: “At first, I didn’t realise how important it is to serve people. DK Freight Services made me realise how good it feels to serve people, and make people happy. We deliver on time, and the cargo is always in good condition.”

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