FOR more than 125 YEARS WE HAVE BEEN ON­-THE­-GO FOR YOU

How it all began | The Naming

On September 15, 1897, Friedrich Hugo Ernst Meyer founded the shipping company Fr. Meyer's Sohn (FMS). Since there was already a company with the name Ernst Meyer, from that point on his grandfather's name Friedrich was added to the name of the company. The small shipping company established its first headquarters in a 35­square­meter office space on Brandstwiete street in Hamburg. 

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First shipments for the paper industry

In 1911, the company had already grown to eleven employees. Its first shipments were successfully transported for the paper industry. After the end of World War I, Ernst Meyer had to rebuild his company. The company's paper department began operations in 1919, a branch office was opened in Luebeck, and the company continued to grow. 

100 employees and 55 tractor­trailers

By the end of the thirties, Fr. Meyer's Sohn had around 100 employees and already had 55 tractor­trailers under contract. The vehicles were used primarily to transport imported goods from the Port of Hamburg to Saxony. On the way back, the trailers were loaded with paper. As a result, the company was involved in the continuously increasing export of paper from paper mills in Thuringia and Saxony. 

Export business is expanded

After some time, FMS was used to handle important shipments overseas and to England for the Austrian paper industry. Beginning in 1964, Fr. Meyer‘s Sohn expanded its network of branch offices to the south, and opened several locations in Spain. FMS also received its first contracts from abroad.

Rebuilding and new partners

After the end of World War II, the company once again needed to start from scratch. Slowly but surely new branch offices were established in West Germany. In the pulp business, the company needed to completely reorganize, however, since its relationships with East German paper mills were inevitably cut off. As a result, the company decided to focus on the Austrian paper industry.

The Fall of the Wall and unforgotten partners

FMS once again opened offices in East Germany. Moving beyond the borders of the new German states, FMS also increased its activities in Eastern Europe. During this time the company established its first business relationships with paper combines in Russia and other Eastern European countries.

Worldwide expansion

FMS opened an office in Antwerp and in the 1990s and 2000s acquired shares of companies in Switzerland, Singapore, Great Britain, the United States, and Brazil, and opened several offices in China. Above and beyond its own locations, a worldwide network of general agents and correspondents ensures that customers receive personal support from a local company. 

Worldwide expansion

Today, FMS is an international transport and logistics company that is proud of its 125-year company history, accepts current challenges and actively shapes the future. Many years of expertise and modern entrepreneurial spirit determine the activities, not only in the forest products sector, but also in the transport of agricultural products, metal and minerals as well as FMCG articles and within the framework of projects from the mechanical engineering sector.

The many digital possibilities of logistics are examined by experienced forwarders and, if found useful, used both for customers and internally. The SCM solution Cruise Control, which was developed in-house and is constantly being further optimized, supports customers in this respect in the management and optimization of logistics processes. 

125 YEARS OF FR. MEYER'S SOHN | MORE INFORMATION