In announcing the acquisition, Chris Coppersmith, President & CEO at Target, stated, "Capitaland Express is a valued addition to the Target team. In business for the past eighteen years, Capitaland Express has grown every year since its inception. Capitaland Express has a solid customer base with which we expect to build upon, utilizing the worldwide resources of Target Logistic Services."
Coppersmith said that Capitaland Express' founder and president, Tom Valentine, will be retained as head of the new Target office. The sales and operating staff also will remain on board. "With Tom and his staff, we have highly experienced, skilled and dedicated people who are thoroughly familiar with this growing regional market," stated Coppersmith.
The facility is the first for Target in upstate New York and will allow the forwarder to tap into the growing cargo market in this region. Coppersmith noted the State Government in Albany is making vigorous efforts to attract advanced, hi-tech industries into the area. The region now is home to a growing list of nano technology, fuel cell and bio-tech firms. Advanced Micro Devices is building a multi-million dollar plant in the Albany area. "Thousands of hi-tech, well paying jobs now are available in this economically expanding region," commented Coppersmith.
Tom Valentine noted that Albany "is at the center of the largest single market in the US and Canada. We are a few hours from most of the major air and seaports in the Northeast United States and Canada. JFK and Newark Airports, as well the New York-New Jersey container ports, are less than 150 miles from Albany and are linked by high speed expressways. We also can easily access all the mid-Atlantic, New England and Canadian cities like Boston, Toronto and Montreal," he averred.
The new acquisition is expected to add significantly to Target's revenue base. The purchase of Capitaland Express is part of a carefully planned program of growth both internally and by acquisition at Target. Just four months ago, Target acquired Discovery Air Cargo, Inc., an air freight forwarder based at JFK, which is expected to add $7 million to the forwarder's revenue base.
