Greater ChinaOperations

Univan brand disappears as Anglo-Eastern reveals new corporate look

A large global shipmanager has refreshed its brand, in the process jettisoning one of the oldest names in the sector.

Twenty-six months after Hong Kong managers Anglo-Eastern and Univan merged to create the Anglo-Eastern Univan Group, the company this week debuted a new corporate look. While the group name continues, the rebrand now uses just the Anglo-Eastern name. The new logo features the letters A and E in a propeller motif, and the only mention of Univan on the new-look Anglo-Eastern website comes under the legal page.

However, the group’s CEO, Bjorn Hojgaard, told Splash that the Univan name could reemerge at a later date. Anglo-Eastern will be the brand for shipmanagement, while the Univan name could be used for other services in the future.

Univan was founded by the late Capt Charles Vanderperre, the self-styled father of shipmanagement. Vanderperre, after a stint with Wallem Shipmanagement in the early 1970s, founded Univan in 1973.

When he died at the age of 87 in 2009, his wife decided to continue to run the Univan brand, installing well-known Hong Kong shipping personality Richard Hext at the helm who then poached shipmanagement veteran Hojgaard from Singapore’s Thome to take the CEO role.

Anglo-Eastern, founded in 1974 and led by Peter Cremers, last updated its brand following the merger with Denholm Ship Management in 2001. The group now has more than 600 ships under full technical management.

Sam Chambers

Starting out with the Informa Group in 2000 in Hong Kong, Sam Chambers became editor of Maritime Asia magazine as well as East Asia Editor for the world’s oldest newspaper, Lloyd’s List. In 2005 he pursued a freelance career and wrote for a variety of titles including taking on the role of Asia Editor at Seatrade magazine and China correspondent for Supply Chain Asia. His work has also appeared in The Economist, The New York Times, The Sunday Times and The International Herald Tribune.
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