TCI Express, the courier and logistics arm of the TCI Group, is looking to increase its staff strength by 500 as it sees sharp growth on the back of higher demand. It now has a staff strength of 3,200.

“Next year, the company plans to hire 400-500 people,” Chander Agarwal, Managing Director of TCI Express, told BusinessLine . The company hired 600 people this year for operating its branches and sorting centres.

Expansion plans

TCI Express is expanding the sorting centres and will open new centres. “We had a 35,000 sq ft warehouse about 60 km from Gurgaon. Now, we have decided to have a much bigger sorting centre of 200,000 sq ft, 20 km from Gurgaon. The company plans to own newer centres without raising any additional debt or diluting equity,” said Agarwal.

Earlier, TCI Express had, during a concall, said that the new sorting centres it is planning are in eight big cities, including Delhi, Pune, Kolkata and Chennai.

“The goal is to have facilities where there is maximum manufacturing. If you see the western belt, we already have large facilities in Ahmedabad, Bengaluru and Chennai,” Agarwal had said.

Agarwal told BusinessLine that the company is unable to pass on the entire increase in the diesel cost to all its clients.

“We can pass on the entire hike to 80 per cent of our clients. We are able to pass on the increase to remaining 20 per cent of the clients only slowly. These 20 per cent customers provide business of large value, and are thus in a better position to negotiate,” he said.

“The unorganised sector units will have much more difficulty passing on the entire burden of the fuel hike to their customers. ” said Agarwal.

The company has seen an increase in the volumes handled, and gets paid from its clients within 50 days. Agarwal claims this is one of the “lowest credit cycle or the best time” when customers pay for the services in the logistics sector.

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