NORDEN’s new Dubai team wins customers and market share despite launching in the midst of the pandemic

Six-months after launch, NORDEN’s new Dubai team is seeing strong growth in the Indian Ocean and Middle East region; and is winning new customers and market share despite having launched during a pandemic.

Yehia Ghazzawi, who joined NORDEN as Head of Dry Cargo Middle East last summer, said the team was extremely busy thanks to a very strong dry cargo market.

“The market here is commanding a premium,” said Yehia. “The UAE economy is recovering well after Covid-19 with around 85% of the population already vaccinated, and we had a strong first quarter mainly driven by high demand and lack of available ships.”

The Dubai office was launched following the closure of NORDEN’s office in Mumbai, and the relocation of a four-person team to the UAE.

“We opened in Dubai because it’s a major shipping hub and we wanted to get much closer to our clients here,” said Yehia.

“Covid has unfortunately put a stop to face-to-face meetings for now. But despite having to do a lot virtually, this hasn’t stopped us growing. As soon as restrictions allow, we are ready to take our customer service to the next level.”

As well as continuing to service customers in India, the team is targeting new clients across MENA region and South Africa; mainly shipping commodities such as aluminium, cementitious products, coal, fertilizer, minerals and steel in the Panamax, Supramax and Handysize segments. The Dubai team works closely with NORDEN teams in 11 global locations. “ “The excellent connectivity between our global teams and the client-centric approach in NORDEN has been an eye-opener for me,” adds Yehia.

Yehia is now focused on maintaining customer service; as well as finding new talent to join the growing team in Dubai.
“The demand is for good service and a reliable counterparty in what is a very volatile freight market,” said Yehia. “We are focusing on always being there for our customers to give them the flexibility and performance they need.”