Group managing director, Pieter den Hartogh, said:
“On behalf of all Den Hartogh employees I can say we are extremely proud to now use the designation ‘Royal’. It is both literally and figuratively the crowning glory for the work of our employees all around the world after 100 years of entrepreneurship. People were back than and still are the backbone of our company. We have been able to evolve the past century because of our culture of entrepreneurship, facing the future and adapting ourselves accordingly. And because of our constant focus on improvement and solving challenges by coming up with answers and new logistics solutions.”
In the Netherlands the predicate ‘Royal’ was introduced in 1807 by the first king of the Netherlands, Louis Napoleon Bonaparte. The king can award any company, association or institution the right to use ‘Royal’ in their name. To be eligible, an organisation must hold a highly prominent position within its field, be of national importance and have an existence for at least a hundred years. The size of the company, its operational management, its workforce and its revenue are all taken into account. The King himself is the only formal institute authorised to confer the designation.