A 2025 RECAP AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS MESSAGE FROM UPF
As we close another remarkable year at UPF Group, we reflect on a period defined by growth, partnerships, and a continued commitment to doing logistics differently. In less than three years, UPF has evolved into a rapidly expanding logistics network across Africa and Europe—driven by relationships, local empowerment, and a belief that logistics is, above all, a people business. At the centre of this journey is CEO and Founder Thomas Vestergaard, whose vision and hands-on leadership continue to shape UPF’s culture and direction.
2025 HIGHLIGHTS
This year marked a period of focused and intentional growth for UPF Group:
- Continued expansion across Southern, Eastern, and Central Africa
- The opening of UPF Cameroon in Douala, strengthening our presence in Central Africa and enhancing connectivity between inland markets and key coastal gateways
- Ongoing development of corridor coverage to support regional trade and complex project cargo movements
- Growth of our on-the-ground teams across multiple markets, with expanding operational, commercial, and compliance expertise
- Our new UPF Kenya office in Mombasa strengthens our ability to support East Africa’s logistics needs.
Our expansion has remained people-led and deliberate — building capability where it matters most and ensuring every new office is positioned for long-term impact
Transparency is at the core of our communication, reflecting our past work, our expanding team, our collaborations, and what lies ahead.
Alongside our main communication channels on LINKEDIN and the UPF GROUP WEBSITE, this monthly newsletter serves as an extension of how we connect with our clients, partners, and stakeholders.
ONE OF OUR CORE STRENGTHS: CORRIDOR MAPPING
UPF’s corridor mapping expertise is built on deep regional presence and real-world operational experience across Africa and Europe. By combining on-the-ground knowledge with centralized planning and governance, UPF identifies proven transport corridors that work in practice—not just on paper.
These corridor maps factor in infrastructure realities, port capabilities, border processes, and operational risk, enabling faster decisions, greater cost certainty, and reliable execution for heavy-lift, project, and specialized cargo.
GROWING AND EXPANDING!
UPF’s expansion model is deliberately unconventional. We operate lean offices and give real independence to local managers and teams, enabling decisions to be made where the work happens. This approach strengthens accountability and accelerates execution. Supporting this decentralized structure is a robust central platform that ensures consistency and reliability across the organization. Our UPF Core Services office in South Africa provides centralized finance, administration, systems, compliance, and governance support to support the entire UPF Group spearheaded by Pernille Kristensen the Managing Director, and while our growing presence — including the addition of Kenya and Cameroon — allows local offices to focus on delivery, impact, and market responsiveness.
UPF GLOBAL TEAM GROWS – PLEASE WELCOME OUR NEW COWORKERS.
UPF Kenya
David Kaswara
General Manager
UPF Cameroon
Henry Chick Tebo Operations Controller
UPF Core Services
Peggy Nkopo Marketing Coordinator
UPF Core Services
Boniswa Ramabulana Financial Controller
UPF Mozambique
Joaquim Duzenta Import Operator
– Logistics made personal.
Looking ahead to early 2026, UPF’s Marketing team are preparing joint marketing initiatives with Afrilink Ocean for a direct coastal breakbulk liner connecting Dar es Salaam and Mombasa, focused on southbound cargoes into South Africa.
Pic Ref: UPF Cameroon Team, Maria Mumena and Chick Henry Tebo at the UPF Cameroon new office in Douala.
A recent example is UPF’s Cameroon office, a strategic step that strengthens links between Central African industry, coastal gateways, and inland projects.
Cameroon now features across UPF’s public listings, with dedicated team profiles and Douala-based role postings—signaling a long-term commitment to local capability and service reliability
FOUNDERS INSIGHT: MAKING LOGISTICS PERSONAL
For Thomas Vestergaard, Africa has become both a professional and personal home. Trained in Aarhus and shaped early by trust-based shipping work, he built his foundation at Otto Danielsen—later part of Tschudi Logistics Group—where he helped establish Tschudi Project Transport and first worked across Africa.
“Making Logistics Personal—is more than words; it’s embodied in actions, that’s something people appreciate, and are not necessarily used to in Africa.”
Early experience in trust-based, family-run operations shaped a leadership philosophy centred on relationships, accountability, and face-to-face engagement.
Years working across Africa — including being based in Mozambique during the COVID period — further reinforced the belief that logistics succeeds when it is personal.
UPF GROUP CEO AND FOUNDER: THOMAS VESTERGAARD
What began as circumstance became clarity, leading him to co-found UPF Group with partners aligned around heavy-lift and project transport—built on face-to-face engagement, quick decisions, and trust forged at the table
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR OUR CLIENTS
- Access to experienced local teams across multiple corridors
- Strong upfront planning supported by corridor intelligence
- Faster decision-making and direct accountability
- Practical, tailored solutions for complex cargo movements
- We focus on long-term partnerships built on trust and performance.
A HOLIDAY MESSAGE FROM UPF
As the year draws to a close, we thank our clients, partners, and colleagues for the trust, collaboration, and shared ambition that made this journey possible.
UPF was built on the belief that logistics is personal — shaped by people, relationships, and accountability. That belief continues to guide our growth.
From all of us at UPF Group, we wish you a peaceful holiday season and a successful year ahead.
We welcome conversations on upcoming 2026 projects. Let’s plan early for complex cargo movements in the year ahead.
