Aramex is an Emirati (Jordanian Origin)
multinational logistics, courier and package delivery company based in
Dubai
Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...
,
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...
(UAE).
The company was founded by
Fadi Ghandour
Fadi Ghandour (born 1959) is a Jordanian-Lebanese entrepreneur, investor, and philanthropist. He is the Executive Chairman oWamda a platform that builds and invests in entrepreneurship ecosystems across the Middle East and North Africa, Turkey and ...
and
Bill Kingson in 1982 in
Amman
Amman (; ar, عَمَّان, ' ; Ammonite language, Ammonite: 𐤓𐤁𐤕 𐤏𐤌𐤍 ''Rabat ʻAmān'') is the capital and largest city of Jordan, and the country's economic, political, and cultural center. With a population of 4,061,150 a ...
,
Jordan
Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...
.
It is the first Arab-based company to be listed on the
NASDAQ
The Nasdaq Stock Market () (National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations Stock Market) is an American stock exchange based in New York City. It is the most active stock trading venue in the US by volume, and ranked second ...
stock exchange.
Aramex is listed on the
Dubai Financial Market
The Dubai Financial Market (DFM) ( ar, سوق دبي المالي) is a stock exchange located in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. It was founded on 26 March 2000.
Overview
, there are 67 companies listed on DFM. Most of them are UAE-based companie ...
.
Othman Aljeda serves as the company's
CEO
A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...
.
Aramex has approximately 18,000 employees in 70 countries.
Thomas Friedman
Thomas Loren Friedman (; born July 20, 1953) is an American political commentator and author. He is a three-time Pulitzer Prize winner who is a weekly columnist for ''The New York Times''. He has written extensively on foreign affairs, global tr ...
profiled the company in his book, ''
The World Is Flat
''The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century'' is a book by Thomas L. Friedman that analyzes globalization, primarily in the early 21st century. The title is a metaphor for viewing the world as a level playing field in te ...
''.
History
Fadi Ghandour
Fadi Ghandour (born 1959) is a Jordanian-Lebanese entrepreneur, investor, and philanthropist. He is the Executive Chairman oWamda a platform that builds and invests in entrepreneurship ecosystems across the Middle East and North Africa, Turkey and ...
co-founded Aramex shortly after receiving his
BA in political science from
George Washington University
, mottoeng = "God is Our Trust"
, established =
, type = Private federally chartered research university
, academic_affiliations =
, endowment = $2.8 billion (2022)
, preside ...
, with his business partner, Bill Kingson in 1982.
Kingson, a friend of Ghandour's father and owner of a small courier company in the
New York tri-state area, discussed the business with Fadi Ghandour after he had expressed interest in the business.
After their discussion, Kingson proposed a partnership to establish a courier business in the
Middle East
The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...
with Ghandour.
The company began operations in
Amman, Jordan
Amman (; ar, عَمَّان, ' ; Ammonite: 𐤓𐤁𐤕 𐤏𐤌𐤍 ''Rabat ʻAmān'') is the capital and largest city of Jordan, and the country's economic, political, and cultural center. With a population of 4,061,150 as of 2021, Amman is ...
.
Arab American Express aimed to become the first
courier
A courier is a person or organisation that delivers a message, package or letter from one place or person to another place or person. Typically, a courier provides their courier service on a commercial contract basis; however, some couriers are ...
company in the Middle East.
At the time there were no international courier companies based in the region because of logistical and bureaucratic challenges caused by civil wars and complex political relationships.
The company's first international delivery was a document for the Housing Bank for Trade and Finance based in
Jordan
Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...
to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
.
Within two years, the company's name was shortened to Aramex.
In 1984, the company's operations were less than $1 million in revenue.
Aramex offered
Airborne Express
Airborne Express was an express delivery company and cargo airline. Headquartered in Seattle, Washington, its hub was in Wilmington, Ohio.
Airborne was founded as the Airborne Flower Traffic Association of California in 1946 to fly flowers fr ...
50% ownership of the company for $100,000, that year.
Airborne Express declined the offer because it did not have the resources to invest in a small market such as the
Middle East
The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...
.
The partnership made Aramex responsible for Airborne's business in the region.
Aramex moved its headquarters to
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...
in 1985.
Aramex gained
Federal Express
FedEx Corporation, formerly Federal Express Corporation and later FDX Corporation, is an American multinational conglomerate holding company focused on transportation, e-commerce and business services based in Memphis, Tennessee. The name "Fe ...
as a client in 1987.
In the first year of partnership, 30% of Aramex's revenue came from packages originating from the Federal Express network.
Airborne Express acquired 9% of Aramex for $2 million.
Aramex was listed on the
NASDAQ
The Nasdaq Stock Market () (National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations Stock Market) is an American stock exchange based in New York City. It is the most active stock trading venue in the US by volume, and ranked second ...
stock exchange in January 1997.
The company became the first Arab-based company to trade its shares on an American stock exchange.
Aramex's valuation was $24 million and the
IPO
An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investment ...
raised $7 million.
The company accrued $66 million in revenue .
The company expanded its operations to 120 locations in 33 countries, primarily emerging markets in the Middle East and
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...
by 2001.
The company's strategy was to enter high-growth markets characterized by high populations and liberalizing economies.
During summer 2001,
Abraaj Capital
The Abraaj Group was a private equity firm operating in six continents that is currently in liquidation due to accusations of fraud. The firm was founded by Pakistani businessman Arif Naqvi and was based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
History
...
, the first private equity firm in the Middle East, proposed Aramex a leveraged
buyout
In finance, a buyout is an investment transaction by which the ownership equity of a company, or a majority share of the stock of the company is acquired. The acquiror thereby "buys out" the present equity holders of the target company. A buyout ...
offer that would take the company off of the NASDAQ stock exchange.
The deal was accepted and Abraaj Capital acquired the majority of Aramex for $65 million in February 2002.
The deal allowed Kingson and Airborne to exit, while Ghandour retained 25% of the company and management control.
Abraaj acquired 75% of Aramex and made 6% of its shares available to company employees in the form of stock.
Between 2002 and 2003 Aramex's net income rose from $4 million to $10 million.
In 2003, DHL acquired Airborne Express, Aramex's main United States partner. This resulted in Airborne Express exiting the Airborne Alliance. In the same year, Aramex took over the alliance and co-founded the Global Distribution Alliance (GDA), a global alliance of 40 express companies with combined revenues of $7.5 billion. Aramex is chairing the alliance which uses a shipment management system developed by the company.
Aramex went public on the
Dubai Financial Market
The Dubai Financial Market (DFM) ( ar, سوق دبي المالي) is a stock exchange located in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. It was founded on 26 March 2000.
Overview
, there are 67 companies listed on DFM. Most of them are UAE-based companie ...
in February 2005.
The IPO raised $270 million.
The company's revenue increased 23% over 2004 and net income increased 56% that year.
As part of its expansion plans, Aramex concluded a series of acquisitions, including Priority Airfreight, InfoFort, Freight Professionals and TwoWay-Vanguard.
World-renowned writer and columnist
Thomas Friedman
Thomas Loren Friedman (; born July 20, 1953) is an American political commentator and author. He is a three-time Pulitzer Prize winner who is a weekly columnist for ''The New York Times''. He has written extensively on foreign affairs, global tr ...
used Aramex in his book, ''
The World Is Flat
''The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century'' is a book by Thomas L. Friedman that analyzes globalization, primarily in the early 21st century. The title is a metaphor for viewing the world as a level playing field in te ...
'', as an example of companies that benefit from what he calls the flattening of the world.
The flattening of the world is the leveling of the economic field and the destruction of "barriers to entry," opening the door wide for an individual or a company anywhere in the world to collaborate or compete globally.
Expansion
In February 2011, Aramex acquired OneWorld Courier and In-Time Couriers, two Kenyan courier firms.
Aramex acquired Berco Express, a South African logistics firm in December 2011.
PayPal
PayPal Holdings, Inc. is an American multinational financial technology company operating an online payments system in the majority of countries that support online money transfers, and serves as an electronic alternative to traditional paper ...
partnered with Aramex in 2012.
The partnership gave PayPal credibility in the Middle East, while opening up new markets abroad for Aramex.
Aramex developed REDe, a solution aimed at enabling companies to begin selling their products online, in early 2012.
ShopGo, an e-commerce solution, released Aramex Suite in August 2013.
The module enabled e-commerce stores to automatically access several of Aramex's services.
Aramex launched Aramex Bio, a medical courier service in March 2014.
The service was launched in the Middle East and North Africa.
In June 2014, Aramex acquired Mail Call Couriers, an Australian courier service, which at the end of 2016, was acquired by Australia Post.
In January 2016,
Fastway Couriers
Fastway Couriers (formerly trading as HB Couriers) is a courier delivery services company founded in Napier, New Zealand. At the peak of its' service, Fastway operated delivery services in New Zealand, Australia, Ireland and South Africa. The c ...
, a New Zealand-based courier service with operations in New Zealand, Australia, South Africa and Ireland announced that it had been acquired by Aramex. In 2019, Aramex acquired Saudi Tal for Commerce and Contract Company to expand its operations in Saudi Arabia.
In October 2021, GeoPost, the express parcel arm of French Groupe La Poste acquired a 20.15% stake in Aramex.
Sustainability
The company supported the Ruwwad Al Tanmeya initiative in 2006. The initiative aimed to involve the private sector in spurring community development through youth empowerment and investments in the community through education, civic engagement and volunteering. Aramex has a twenty percent stake in Ruwwad Al Tanmeya.
Aramex became the first company in the region to release an annual
sustainability
Specific definitions of sustainability are difficult to agree on and have varied in the literature and over time. The concept of sustainability can be used to guide decisions at the global, national, and individual levels (e.g. sustainable livi ...
report in 2006.
The company joined the United Nations Global Compact, the world's largest global corporate citizenship initiative, in 2007.
References
{{Reflist
Companies established in 1982
1982 establishments in Jordan
Multinational companies headquartered in the United Arab Emirates
Logistics companies of the United Arab Emirates
Companies listed on the Dubai Financial Market
Companies based in Dubai