Tristan Balayn was appointed Managing Director of GEFCO UK in June 2011. With 20 years of working with GEFCO, he comes with a very high level of expertise in the business and an in depth knowledge of the Transportation and Logistics Industry. With a degree in Logistics Operations Management, Tristan started his career on a graduate placement with GEFCO UK, in Coventry, and hasn’t left the Group since.

Since then, he has held a wide variety of roles within all areas of the business. Upon his return to GEFCO France, Tristan was responsible for freight forwarding operations in Grenoble for five years, reporting directly to the Managing Director of the subsidiary. He then took on the role of Depot Manager in Nantes, specialising in groupage and freight forwarding. Keeping similar responsibilities, Tristan moved to a larger depot in Dijon, where his objectives were to optimise the level of freight forwarding and groupage operations.

In 2001, he was appointed Overland Operations Manager for GEFCO France, where he was responsible for a network of 56 depots, and ensured a good development of all freight operations and staff. In 2005 Tristan then went on to report directly to the French Senior Managing Team as the CPSA (PSA Peugeot Citroen Customer) Division Manager, where he led a reformation project to adapt PSA plants supply logistics to their operational development strategy.

Before coming back to GEFCO UK, Tristan spent five years in Lyon, one of GEFCO France’s eight international hubs, as Regional Director for the Rhone Alpes – Auvergne area. Whilst there, he was responsible for all maritime, road, air, customs, and logistics activities across 13 sites. He also standardised all processes and procedures in the region and initiated sustainable development projects.

Now in the UK, Tristan is head of GEFCO UK and its Senior Management Team, and is responsible for all GEFCO UK activities. His top priority is to maintain and surpass the highest level of customer service. Tristan’s objectives for the next 12 months are to reinforce GEFCO’s corporate image in the UK whilst strengthening the subsidiary’s efficiency and profitability through the implementation of GEFCO’s ‘Managing Through Quality’ strategy, as well as responding innovatively to environmental challenges.