Forwarder WFS set for growth after IATA accreditation

UK forwarder WFS International has become an IATA Accredited Cargo Agent, an achievement it hopes will help propel future growth.
Based near London Stansted Airport, the company’s airfreight manager, Andy Lee, told Air Cargo News the application process to become an accredited agent had taken around 10 weeks.
The whole process had been straight forward and was completed though the IATA’s online portal with a single point of contact, he explained.
Lee added that the accreditation marked the start of a period of growth for the company.
“The application did not require us to make changes to our business, moreover we feel that this will allow us to take the business forward, a landmark event in the 33 year history of WFS International,” he said.
“As an IATA Cargo Agent, we are now able to contact the airlines directly for rates and cargo space availability, and book our shipments.
“Being a member of IATA, we believe that this demonstrates to our existing and future clients our strategy for growth and commitment to the highest level of customer service.”
IATA accreditation provides agents with industry recognition of their financial and professional competence and airlines with a worldwide distribution network of approved agents to sell their product.
Earlier this year, IATA and freight forwarder organisation Fiata signed long-awaited reforms to the IATA Cargo Agency Program.
The reforms reflects the evolution of IATA cargo agents or freight forwarders from being ‘selling-agents’ for airlines into ‘purchasing customers’ and aims to involve forwarders as equal partners in the decision making process.
It also moves decision-making on the rules governing the airline-forwarder relationship away from an airline-led conference to a governance body, the IATA-FIATA Governance Board.