FAN Courier posts 12.5 percent growth in turnover, record investments of 55 million euros in 2024
Petre Barac
Posted On January 16, 2025
FAN Courier, the leader of the Romanian courier market, ended 2024 with a turnover of 1.38 billion lei (approximately 280 million euros), up 12.5 percent compared to the previous year.
Last year, FAN Courier opened new international offices, expanded and increased the sorting capacity of several regional HUBs (Deva, Arad, Constanța and Iași), modernized the Ștefănești headquarters and continued to expand the FANbox locker network nationwide.
The 55 million euros of investments in 2024 represent an all-time record for FAN Courier.
In 2024, the two main investment directions of the courier company were international expansion and connecting the Romanian market to those in Western Europe, as well as the development and optimization of the storage and sorting infrastructure, in order to accelerate operations and facilitate the development of alternative delivery solutions.
In 2025, the company will focus on continuing investments in the development and technology of regional HUBs, equipping the HUB in Ștefănești with a new sorting lane, expanding the FANbox locker network, as well as continuing international development. The proposed value of investments in 2025 amounts to 40 million euros.
“The year 2024 was, in general, a more settled one compared to recent years, a year in which we managed to meet our business objectives. The main challenges of the year were the continued increase in operational costs, as a result of the galloping inflation in the period immediately following the pandemic, but also the increasingly acute shortage of labor, which forces us to periodically increase our recruitment and training budgets and bring in workers from abroad.
Last year, we continued several projects started in previous years, such as international development, the expansion of the locker network or the development and technology of HUBs in the country. Regarding international expansion, last year we opened new offices in the countries of the region and, in addition to the Republic of Moldova, we are already present with operations in countries such as Greece, Bulgaria, Slovenia and Hungary. We also equipped the HUB in Arad, intended exclusively for international deliveries, with a sorting belt with an operating capacity of 80,000 parcels per day. The most important investment we made last year – and one of the company’s largest investments in recent years – was the expansion and modernization of the Ștefănești warehouse”, said Adrian Mihai, CEO and co-founder of FAN Courier.
Expansion and modernization of the Ștefănești HUB, an investment of 25 million euros
The total area of the land acquired for the construction of the new HUB is approximately 185,000 sqm, where there are 17 building blocks, including underground and technological constructions, with a built area of approximately 30,000 sqm. The new Ștefănești HUB includes a fulfillment warehouse, which covers over 60% of the built area, as well as an area dedicated exclusively to deliveries to FANbox and Collect Point.
One of the company’s most ambitious projects in recent years has been the development and expansion of the FANbox locker network, and with this expansion came the natural need for a dedicated flow for this type of delivery, with a direct impact on the company’s efficiency and productivity.
FANbox lockers – 2,100 units by February 2025
The FANbox locker network is in continuous expansion, reaching 2,000 units at the moment. By the end of February, the network will number 2,100 units, and the next 500 units, for which the delivery contract has already been signed, are to be installed in the current year.
2025 will be the year in which the company will focus on increasing the volumes shipped to the lockers, but also on increasing the number of units installed. We aim to have an increase of over 80% in terms of volumes delivered to the lockers this year.
Investment budget of 40 million euros in 2025
FAN Courier has budgeted investments of 40 million euros in 2025, a year that is expected to be less predictable, as a result of political instability and economic uncertainty.
“The unclear situation in the political area and, especially, the maintenance of this uncertainty, could also have an impact on the business environment, in the context in which Romania is recording very large deficits. We still do not have very clear signals regarding possible fiscal changes for the current year, therefore, our strategy is a reserved one. The lack of fiscal predictability, economic uncertainties, the possible decrease in consumption as a result of the austerity measures imposed by the Government, all of these lead to a general tense climate, both among the population and at the business level”, declared Neculai Mihai, co-founder of FAN Courier.
In terms of challenges, in addition to those mentioned above, one of the most important remains the lack of labor, one of the solutions being the recruitment of workers from outside Romania, which requires more time and more financial resources. At the moment, 130 people of foreign nationality work in FAN Courier warehouses in Bucharest and throughout the country. Nepalese personnel were hired for multiple key execution functions in several warehouses in Romania, and they quickly adapted to the organization’s requirements and the specifics of the local teams, showing professionalism and involvement.
In this context, the company’s investment and development strategy will be adjusted along the way, the main directions for this year being the expansion and consolidation of FAN Courier’s position on the international market, increasing storage and sorting capacity by modernizing and upgrading regional HUBs, as well as the identification and continuous development of out of home delivery services, with everything that alternative delivery means: FANbox lockers, Collect Point partner locations and FAN headquarters in the country.
