Belgian globetrotter to lead strategy at Teesside Airport

Steven Verhasselt spent 20 years turning Liege Airport from a small regional airport into a cargo juggernaut, handling two-thirds of all European air freight.

Now the 52-year-old Belgian will be helping to steer Teesside’s cargo operation - alongside developing freight opportunities with his firm FB Cargo Strategy - by leading business development and implementing a strategy for delivering the airport’s cargo aspirations.

Steven said he spent the first four years putting in the groundwork at Liege to make it the powerhouse it is today.

He said: “It took a while, but it came good after we’d put the work in.

“We got perishables through Ethiopia, E-Commerce, and worked through Hong Kong and China. We offered a unique selling proposal by using our ingenuity around existing legislation.”

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Steven’s background was in seed capital and venture capital before he made a move into aviation.

“On one hand, cargo is really a global business but on the other it’s relatively small – meaning within ten years you knew everybody,” he said.

“There’s also a challenge with passenger travel at an airport. It means we have to be inventive in developing routes when compared to passenger travel. Every cargo route development is like its own mini-project – you have to be much more inventive.

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“Running cargo is much more than just running airside operations. It’s about customs, licence checks, border control, taking cargo to its final destination. That’s what makes it interesting.”

Teesside’s £2.5million state-of-the-art cargo facility has gone from strength to strength since it opened for business, and its status as one of the country’s newest Border Control Points means it can handle flowers, fruit and vegetables.

Steven added: “ For cargo, if organised, Teesside is definitely a competitor.

“You can compete on speed and compete on reliability – that’s the benefit of a regional airport. Speed is important but in certain areas, such as automotive freight, reliability is key.

“The market offer in Northern England is under-developed and there may well be an opportunity there. You’ve also got Brexit which hasn’t quite been digested – companies are still working it out and there are logistic challenges so there are opportunities there.

“I see the potential to develop some very sustainable long-term successes – be it Africa with perishables, business in the US, and maybe Asia with stopovers.

“You also need to be wise where we position ourselves – we’re not going to be landing 747s,” he added.

Steven will be supported by his colleague at FB Cargo Strategy, Koen Servaes, who has 38 years of aviation experience.

Phil Forster, Managing Director of Teesside Airport, said: “Having Steven and Koen boosting our team is a huge coup for us. Both are giants in the cargo industry – and what they’ve done throughout their careers is testament to the hard work, contacts and talent they have.

“To have access to their vast knowledge and expertise is invaluable and we’re delighted they’ve seen our potential and come on board.

“It’ll take time, but this is a huge boost to our efforts to make Teesside an economic engine for our region and put us firmly on the airfreight map.”