As the visionary leader at the helm of KoolKollekt, He take immense delight in steering the trajectory of this dynamic venture—a tech-enabled logistics firm specializing in chilled last-mile home deliveries and cutting-edge B2B solutions catering to the food and pharmaceutical sectors. Boasting over 17 years of expertise in sales and business development, His profound understanding spans the FMCG and retail landscapes, coupled with a keen insight into last-mile logistics and operations.
Beyond his corporate endeavors, He has authored a compelling Finnish book and corresponding audiobook titled #ENTREPRNR. This project showcases authentic tales of resilience and triumph from entrepreneurs across the globe. His fervor lies in disseminating valuable insights gleaned from scaling businesses, venturing into new markets, and surmounting obstacles. Through this, He has driven by a mission to inspire and empower individuals to chase their entrepreneurial aspirations with unwavering determination.
KoolKollekt CEO’s Inspiring Journey
We started the interview by asking, “Navigating the Frontiers of Tech-Driven Logistics: A Journey with KoolKollekt’s Founder and CEO?”
Charles replied, “I was working for a similar company in the Northern Europe, as Country manager and Senior Sales Executive – I realized that need for such a service is very important in the warmer geographical areas, such as the Middle-east so i travelled here to see the competition, the quality of such service and made my mind to start after seeing so many challenges and urgency on fixing various things related to the industry.
One word that describes him the best is; Resilient”
Maintaining Precision
We further asked, “Can you elaborate on the importance of an unbroken cold chain in the food industry and how Koolkollekt addresses this issue?”
Charles replied, “It is very important. Food is sensitive and its’ best before date and general freshness is based on how the products have been delivered. We train our drivers on how to handle sensitive orders, how to place them inside the vehicle and also use different equipment’s in order to optimize food safety. We have ongoing training related to unbroken cold chain regulations and active systems inside the vehicles that monitor the temperature levels and we react when required, in a pro-active manner. We can for example alert our drivers about a door being slightly open, to park the car and handle the situation immediately.”
Fostering Sustainability
We were curious about KoolKollekt’s Commitment and Initiatives in Logistic Operations so we asked, “Koolkollekt emphasizes sustainability in its mission. Could you explain the sustainable practices and initiatives that your company follows in its operations?”
Charles replied, “Our purpose is to reduce CO2 emissions, to reduce both Food and Packaging waste by implementing the products and services we have at KoolKollekt. We offer for example recycling to our customers, so we have a positive impact on the environment. 12% of the whole CO2 emissions globally come from Transport, of which 6% so half, from last mile only. Our last mile platform only has a positive impact when we provide dynamic routing and real time tracking that combined already impacts to the environment. We also will introduce the KoolBox that is a solar-empowered box where you can receive your food-orders when you are not home. This enables less driving by the delivery companies and less passive cooling options such as insulations, gel packs and so on.”
Journey to Success
Then we asked about The Path KoolKollekt’s Founder and CEO Traveled to Attain Present Heights, “What was the path you took to get to where you are today?”
Your Answer: I have been an entrepreneur since 2008, mostly in the Food (FMCG ), industry and the media industry. Before creating KoolKollekt, I was working on a similar business in the Scandinavia and I wanted to go after completely different markets with some of the services and products I developed.
Koolkollekt’s Exceptional Chilled Delivery Service
We further asked, “Customer service is one of the key factors mentioned. How does Koolkollekt ensure exceptional customer service in the chilled last-mile delivery industry?”
Charles replied, “We have daily customer service, almost 24/7 both WhatsApp and via phone calls- we are aware about how to communicate with the customers, what type of words, sentences, and most importantly energy we put forward. It is all about communication and about training – each driver has a certain template we use and send to customers and we go through basic customer service skills and communication with all the drivers so they can represent us in the correct way.”
Strategic Success
The Arabia Times: Koolkollekt mentions broadening market reach and enhancing competitive edge. Can you share some strategies or success stories that demonstrate how your services achieve this?
Charles replied, “Well basically the answer is already mentioned in different sections above. Our market reach will expand to both Spain and KSA in the next few months and we will copy and paste what we have done before. When you have clear systems and processes up and running, it is easier to expand in the best way possible.”
Koolkollekt’s Temperature & Humidity Monitoring
We want to know about the Precise Floral Logistics so we asked, “How does Koolkollekt ensure the careful monitoring of temperatures and humidity levels during the transportation of delicate floral arrangements?”
Charles replied, “We have our own KoolSensor, which is a temperature monitoring system connected to our platform that monitors the temperature levels inside the vehicles, gives real time data on traffic and how the driver behaves behind the wheels. The system is pro-active, so we can react before the incident could happen. The other ones in the market tend to be reactive-ones.”
Cutting-dge Preservation
Koolkollekt’s Technology is known for Chilled Flower Transportation so we further asked, “Could you provide insights into the technology and equipment used by Koolkollekt to ensure the utmost care and freshness of chilled flowers during transportation?”
Charles replied, “We use a dynamic last mile platform to ensure optimal deliveries and the KoolSensor that monitors the temperature levels and road behavior.”
The Arabia Times: How does Koolkollekt stand out from other competitors in the chilled last-mile delivery industry, both in terms of food products and delicate floral arrangements?
Charles replied, “In many ways, the approach we have in training, that we call the KoolAcademy, the products and services around our company makes us different.”
Blossoming Excellence
Then we asked, “What makes Koolkollekt’s delivery services reliable, efficient, and professional, particularly in the context of transporting delicate floral products?”
Charles replied, “Again by using relevant systems that ensure we are constantly aware what is happening on the roads and we actively inform customers and merchants about any possible challenges we face during the day. What we also do is we inform always beforehand, so the possible delay, for example, is not a new thing and everyone are prepared for it.”
Chilled Delivery’s Role in Mitigating Food Waste and Emissions
Then we further got to know about some cool solutions, “In what ways does chilled delivery contribute to reducing food waste and greenhouse gas emissions, as mentioned in your advantages for the food industry?”
Charles replied, “By implementing certain procedures that affect in the excess usage of various insulation materials, passive cooling methods such as gel packs and dry-ice, excess packaging waste and so on. In an ambient delivery, you must use different methods of things in order to keep, for example a frozen product really safe and fresh – upon arrival to the customer. So with us, there is no need to use any of them – or we use very little compared to the ambient ones.”
Koolkollekt’s Message to Our Viewers
Lastly we asked, “Would you like to say anything else to our viewers?”
“I hope you enjoyed this interview and got a little insight about how chilled deliveries differ from quality levels compared to ambient deliveries. Thank you for your attention and let’s keep in touch!” Charles concluded
Connect Charles Kuhlman on LinkedIn