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INTERVIEW WITH FOKKE FELS |
CHAIRMAN AT L.I.T. AG

WE WANT TO GROW QUALITATIVELY AND QUANTITATIVELY

INTERVIEW WITH FOKKE FELS | CHAIRMAN AT L.I.T. AG

WE WANT TO GROW
QUALITATIVELY AND QUANTITATIVELY

L.I.T. CELEBRATED ITS 30TH ANNIVERSARY IN 2018. REASON ENOUGH TO ASK FOKKE FELS ABOUT THE BEGINNINGS AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE L.I.T. GROUP

INTERVIEW WITH FOKKE FELS |
CHAIRMAN AT L.I.T. AG

WE WANT TO GROW QUALITATIVELY AND QUANTITATIVELY

What was your initial goal when you founded the company and how did you come up with the company name L.I.T.?

The aim was to be self-employed in order to achieve something in the logistics sector. Above all, I strived for freedom. We were three people at the beginning: Dieter Lauschke, Roland Schiefke and myself. Roland Schiefke was our computer scientist, representing the “I” in the company name. Each founder stood for a letter with his activity. I took on the logistics part and Lauschke took on the transport, which is how L.I.T. came about. We were very enthusiastic and successful right from the start, even though we were entering a totally occupied market. Reunification gave us an incredible boost and reorganised the market – which played into our hands. I’ve never really regretted it – occasionally in the evening, but in the morning it’s different again (laughs). When in doubt, the feeling of freedom always prevails.

Where do you see the greatest innovative strength in the L.I.T. Group?

In my case, I see it in the ambition not to stand still and to grow in terms of quality and quantity. For me, standing still means being left behind. If we orientate ourselves on this approach, we are also innovative. Innovation can be very diverse – we also have to be “change managers” for once. But we also want to be a good and reliable employer. If we are serious about achieving this, we must always be at the forefront, which means creating new jobs through innovation.

Where do you see L.I.T. in ten years’ time?

We want to be free and independent, not driven. 15 to 20 years ago, the credo was: the successful haulage company is the one that doesn’t have its own cars, you should be “asset-poor”. We have deliberately not done that. Safety is our top priority. That’s why we took a different path and will continue to do so. When we are faced with the decision “make or buy”, we tend to favour “make”. Always with the idea in mind that we want to achieve security – hence the expansion of business areas such as personnel logistics. Yield optimisation and specialisation are good when things are going well, if not, they are a drama. We want to be broadly positioned. The underlying idea is independence. Thanks to our growth over the last five years, we have built up a good buffer so that we can continue to swim ahead and the sharks in the industry can’t get to us so easily. If the market changes due to a recession, mergers can change the situation abruptly. We have to keep up the pace and continue to do things that suit us. The market will become more manageable in ten years’ time, which is why I say: in ten years’ time we will be a leading, medium-sized transport and logistics company in Europe, not just in Germany.

Are there any competitors we can learn from?

We must constantly be on the lookout for good ideas that we can utilise for ourselves. We should never be so arrogant as to rest on our laurels. There is always someone who comes up with new solutions. We then check to what extent they could also be something for us.

What are your three most important personal values?

Reliability, thriftiness, innovative strength. In essence, I associate frugality with spending money properly. For me, it’s a conscious approach to money. The thriftiness that we have to live by in the company can also mean spending an extra 1,000 euros if the long-term yield or return is given.

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