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Five questions for Koray Sütlaş  

Koray Sütlaş started to work as the new business development manager at InterRail Uluslararası Nakliyat ve Lojistik Hizmetler T.A.Ş., Istanbul, in October 2022. He has a bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering from EMU/Cyprus and also holds an MBA degree from Yeditepe University Istanbul. He also graduated  in the Logistics Management Program approved by Istanbul University and both IRU Academy and UND Turkey (International Transporters Association). We asked Koray some personal questions:

Where did you start your career?
I started as a research assistant at the university in the department of international transport and logistics management. Later on, I took on different positions in international logistics companies, as an expert and in management positions. 

I consider a working day successful when …
…I have planned what to do during the day and decided on my priorities accordingly and then see the results.

What impresses me most about my job…

I am a railroad lover. What impresses me most about my job is my efforts to learn something new every day and make a positive change for everyone I work with, whether clients, partners or colleagues.

If I could go on a trip around the world, these would be my destinations…

I wouldn’t just choose one destination. I want to travel the whole world and get to know all its different cultures.

I have always wanted to ….

…reach a strong position in my career.

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Guiding InterRail through challenging times

St. Gallen, January 23, 2023. For a review of 2022 and an outlook on 2023, we interviewed the new InterRail Group Management, consisting of Yuri Kulakin, Jürgen Huschka and Dilshod Suleymanov.

“We have been facing many changes around the globe affecting the business of InterRail since our appointment in early 2022. We have to run fast in order to update our solutions to the global and local market givens. We have been able to make many local, important decisions that benefitted the group as a whole,” says Yuri Kulakin, one of the three Managers of the InterRail Group.

He and his colleagues Dilshod Suleymanov and Jürgen Huschka were appointed to the helm of the InterRail Group to succeed Hans Reinhard, who had headed the Group since it was founded in 2004.

“Daily communication and weekly meetings between the three of us from Western and Eastern Europe and Eurasia keep us informed on daily developments in all parts of our business geography, and allow us to and react promptly to challenges and opportunities,” add Dilshod Suleymanov and Jürgen Huschka.

What rail corridors are currently most in use?

The main IR traffics are connecting China with Europe, the CIS and Central Asia. We keep offering to our customers all the rail and multimodal routes which are functioning. Due to the geo-political situation, we have to design new routes, or re-activate products that were less popular or uncompetitive before.

How did you get through the 2022 business year?

The InterRail Group is well positioned in 2022, with performance outdoing expectations in several countries. Despite many challenges, we can’t complain. It has been very difficult year with challenges we never faced before, but team work and a strong will to survive brought positive results.

We had a big boost in Q1 to Q3/2022, with our existing and also new clients on this corridor – but faced a significant volume drop in Q4 on the China – Europe toute, while still having good stable volumes from Europe to China – which is really challenging these days.

Are there plans to introduce new products?

We keep pioneering and constantly focus on creating and designing new routes and products for the market and our customers. The current situation put real pressure on traditional routes, causing congestions and delays. Thus, we are constantly researching new products and alternative routes. There are plans to develop new products on the China-Central Asia and Europe-Central Asia corridors. Our current development in India is supported by the growing importance of the North-South corridor. And we recently started in Turkey, which will serve as a hub for new traffics.

Where would you like see the Group three / five years from now?

As per our strategy, we want to focus on our three areas of business. In some locations, we already offer all three segments:  conventional cargo, block trains and multimodal traffic, and we want to extend this model to our existing and future locations, as we are also planning to expand to new locations and countries. In five years’ time, we want to see the InterRail companies working and cooperating in harmony, complementing each other with added value services on the Eurasia corridor, with sustainable business and tailor-made services.  

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Happy Chinese New Year

We wish all our customers, partners and colleagues a happy Chinese New Year and would like to take this opportunity to thank you for the excellent cooperations and for the trust placed in our service.

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Member of UTIKAD Türkiye

Istanbul, November 15, 2022. The new Turkish subsidiary InterRail Uluslararası Nakliyat ve Loj.Hizm. T.A.Ş. is happy to be a part UTİKAD – Association of International Forwarding and Logistics Service Providers.

“Of course, as one of the newest and youngest members of UTIKAD, we, as InterRail, will be ready to do our best for the development of our sector in the relevant working groups”, says Enver Eser, Managing Director of InterRail Uluslararası Nakliyat ve Loj.Hizm. T.A.Ş.

Photo from left: KoRay Sütlaş (Business Development Manager, InterRail Türkiye), Ezgi Demir (Sectoral Relations Manager UTIKAD), Enver Eser (Managing Director InterRail Türkiye), Ayşem Ulusoy (President of UTIKAD), Jürgen Huschka (Group Management InterRail Holding AG), Yuri Kulakin (Group Management InterRail Holding AG), Dilshod Suleymanov InterRail Holding AG), Alperen Guler (General Manager of UTIKAD)

 

More about UTIKAD: https://www.utikad.org.tr/EN/

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InterRail opens new branch office in Vienna / Austria

St. Gallen, July 21, 2022. On July 4, InterRail started operating a branch office in Austria, which is set up as a branch office of InterRail Europe GmbH (Germany). The team at the new office in Vienna is active in both operations and sales.

With the new location, InterRail is expanding its geographic coverage at the heart of Europe. From the Austrian capital, the experienced team concentrates on the Eastbound trains of InterRail Europe.

Austria in general, and Vienna specifically, are thriving business hubs in the trade between West and East, especially with the CIS.

“We are sure we can extend our operational and sales reach and assure further stable development for the InterRail Group”, says Jürgen Huschka, Member of the InterRail Group Management.

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InterRail Europe GmbH, Germany, with new Co-Managing Director

Igor Maiorov (43) has been appointed as Co-Managing Director of InterRail Europe GmbH, Germany. He took up his post on April 1, 2022. He has been with the company since 2017 holding various management positions, most recently as authorized signatory in the role of Director Operations. He is responsible for the planning, management and continuous optimization of the company’s operational processes, while Birgit Dehner, Managing Director of InterRail Europe since 2015, remains responsible for HR, Finance and Administration as before.

We took this opportunity to ask Igor a few questions.

After five years at InterRail Europe, you have now been appointed to the management board. What does this mean to you?
A great appreciation for the last five years and trust in my team and in me as a person. I am simply looking forward to the next steps together with InterRail Europe.

How would you describe InterRail in three sentences?
We are family-oriented, but still professional. We are down-to-earth, but we don’t make ourselves smaller than we are. We are sometimes groundbreaking, but sometimes also a bit crazy – in a positive sense. We are just the way we are.

How do you plan to approach your new role as managing director?
To stay true to myself and my principles. To approach my new task with a healthy dose of “respect”, and with a great will and desire to grow together with InterRail Europe and with the new challenges.

Where do you see the greatest potential for the further development of InterRail Europe? And what are the challenges InterRail Europe is facing?
The greatest potential of InterRail Europe lies in InterRail Europe itself. We take care of our employees, and our employees take care of our customers. Satisfied employees => Satisfied customers=>Satisfied InterRail

There is not just the ONE challenge. Shortage of skilled labor, a constantly changing and unstable market, congested infrastructure, rising cost of living. InterRail has to stay flexible and use its trump cards skillfully.

Please complete this sentence for us:
For a good work-life balance… I need my loved ones, fresh air, my garden and a modern employer who grants me my freedom.

And do you have a (life/work) motto?
“You can get it, if you really want”.

Thank you very much for your time!

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InterRail epxands the New Delhi Location

New Delhi, 15 February 2022. InterRail’s Indian office in New Delhi moved to larger premises earlier this year to enable the expansion of its workforce planned for 2022. The site opened in 2018 and is headed by Satyendra Sinha.

“All major rail-related decisions are made in the capital. New, important industrial sites have also developed around Delhi in recent years. For InterRail it is therefore important to further expand our activities in this region,” says Vijay Narayan, Managing Director of InterRail India Pvt. Ltd.

India has long been an important and future-oriented market for InterRail. In 2010, a first delegation office was established, which was transformed into an independent, fully operational country unit in 2013. India is a very important trading partner for Russia and the Central Asian CIS countries, whose rail transport activities are part of InterRail’s core know-how. From India, the flow of goods passes through Chinese, Russian and northern European ports, which are all areas where the InterRail Group is well positioned.

New address:

InterRail India Pvt Ltd
Unit No. 330, 3rd Floor
DLF Prime Tower
Okhla Phase-1
110020 New Delhi / India
Phone: +91 11 49937421

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Chinese new year

We wish all our customers, partners and colleagues a happy Chinese New Year and would like to take this opportunity to thank you for the excellent cooperations and for the trust placed in our service.

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New Business Development Manager

Stefaniea Klermund, InterRail Business Development Manager since December 1, 2021, is responsible for the strategic development of InterRail products and services, the identification of new markets and customer needs, and key account management for the entire InterRail Group. She holds a Master’s degree in Logistics and Transport Management, speaks German, English and Hungarian, and lives in Vienna with her family. After 100 days in her new position at InterRail, we had a few questions for her.

Stefaniea, how were your first 100 days “in office”? What have you been busy with?
I received a very nice and warm welcome at InterRail and I am happy to be part of a successful family business. From the very beginning, I have been given exciting and responsible tasks, which motivates me personally. I am working on new markets like Turkey, Japan or on alternative transport routes between Europe and Asia. At the moment, I am trying to put the collected ideas and potentials for InterRail on paper in the form of a business plan.

Another current topic, as in many industries, is sustainability. It is a long process to analyze potential relocation opportunities and thus improve the carbon footprint of the company and of our customers.

In addition, I work on customer requests that are not common and that go beyond the current portfolio. These include customized block train solutions for automotive customers, for example.

Due to the current geopolitical situation, the tasks and topics have of course changed to some extent. We are currently trying to find the best possible solution for the Middle Corridor route.


Where do you see the greatest potential for the development of InterRail traffics?
Steady growth in volume, an increased modal shift to rail, and an intensified presence in the market. Beside Europe – Asia traffics, InterRail also focuses on CIS countries, India, Japan, intra-European rail solutions and tries to diversify.

Are there any new markets that are developing, new destinations that are gaining in importance?
Due to the current political situation not only new destinations but also new corridors will gain importance. Time will tell how the sanctions will affect, among other things, overall pricing, modal shift and alternative corridors. I think the importance of the Middle Corridor of the Silk Road will increase and I hope that customers will adopt this solution as an alternative. This also demands a high flexibility for InterRail to successfully handle the new challenges operationally.

Due to the pandemic, companies have reconsidered the agility of their supply chain and positioned some production sites closer to the sales market, such as to Turkey.

The InterRail Group sees great potential in markets like Turkey and is well on its way to further growth. Due to the current situation, it is possible that this effect will be further strengthened. The InterRail Group sees great potential in markets such as Turkey and is well on its way to further growth. Among the three most important trade markets for Turkey are China and Germany.

My personal interest and know-how have been in reefer container transports by rail for quite some time. Due to the complexity in the planning and implementation of such transports, it is at this stage still a vision of the future to get reefers rolling.

What are the requirements of InterRail’s customers?
In general, this really depends on many factors; for some customers, transit time is crucial, for others, the transport rate is more important, and for still others, good service and communication are the top priorities. For many customers, agility is significant to provide quick solutions adapted to the current transport situation.  Personal, regular and honest customer contact is very important to me in order to do business together successfully.

What is your motto?
“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you have to keep moving.” (Einstein)

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Happy Golden Week 2021

China National Day is annually celebrated on October 1st to commemorate the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949. China is enjoying a 7-day holiday from October 1st to 7th, which is known as Golden Week. Although our main operations team at InterRail China will be available to keep our block trains running. Just leave us an email.

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