By Ibiyemi Mathew
OnePort 365, a tech-enabled freight management start-up held a virtual media parley last week.
The virtual event which was hosted by Mr Yomi Owope enabled OnePort365 to re-introduce and align itself with media and to educate on services offerings, platform updates, products and partnerships.
Founded in 2019 OnePort 365’s mission is to facilitate seamless delivery of containerized cargo and other freight management services for its customers. OnePort 365’s freight management is indeed seamless, its services include ocean FCL shipping and inland haulage with GPS enabled tracking, customs brokerage and terminal services, marine insurance and short and long-term warehousing. Through digitisation, the company optimises freight processes for businesses which enables them to improve operational efficiency for scalable growth and cash flow.
One unique selling point, highlighted by Hio Sola Usidame – the start-up’s co-founder, is the unparalleled offering of the company’s digitized platform which is automation of the import and export freight process. Customers can easily take control of their shipment processes with the help of cutting-edge technology. OnePort 365 also eases the documentation process for customers as they offer a personalised dashboard that allows them to manage it. The safety of customers’ containers is a priority for OnePort 365. Often containers are lost in transit and there is no visibility, some of them are worth a fortune and are unaccounted for. OnePort 365’s tracking system enables customers to track and monitor their goods in real-time.
Although there are glaring opportunities within the industry, there are still several unresolved challenges. OnePort 365 CEO Hio Sola-Usidame highlighted some of the inefficiencies businesses and entrepreneurs face that require a digital solution and optimal freight services. He stated that one of the challenges in the freighting process is the time it takes to gate-in to the port. “This delay can be a major concern when handling perishable commodities. For example, some yam or cocoa container shipments handled by a less than optimally efficient team can already have been in transit for a month. After which it is stuck at the port for maybe another 6 weeks without gating in. “These goods are containerised so nobody can tell the status of the cargo, at the end of the day, they get shipped off and could get to the buyer in a less than excellent condition.” He further highlighted that, the extensive documentation processes are not time efficient as they are still manual when the process could be digital, “booking a freighting service should be as easy as buying a plane ticket,” said Hio Sola-Usidame.
He further emphasized that these challenges often serve as a roadblock for several businesses that otherwise should increase revenue by having undisrupted access to global trade. By simplifying what would be stumbling blocks for these businesses, OnePort 365 is helping indigenous businesses create a rock-solid foundation for the future. Nonetheless, he admitted that the government is making an impressive effort into simplifying the processes and solving challenges.
Responding to a question on the cost-effectiveness of OnePort 365, Hio Sola-Usidame responds, “If you can scale technology, it doesn’t have to be expensive. We are highly competitive and to a large extent we are more affordable than traditional freighting companies.”
Core members of OnePort 365’s team namely; Hio Sola Usidame, Co-founder; Dolapo Fasina, Marketing and Communications Manager; Morenike Jaiyesimi, Operations Manager; Olasunkanmi Olaniyan, Finance Manager; Seni Kester, HR Manager; Foluke Shaba, Sales Manager; Adebayo Adewunmi, Lead Software Developer were all present to share the mission and vision of the company.