“We are not an ordinary timber trading company. We want to use technology in a targeted way to make purchasing wood and wood products as easy and uncomplicated as possible for our customers, thereby making the lives of our suppliers and buyers easier,” Dimitris Pagkratis, one of four founders of the online timber trading platform Timberhub, says. In the two and a half years since its establishment, the start-up has been growing steadily and now employs an impressive 25 people. Several thousand trucks have made quick and smooth deliveries from sawmills to end customers.
Ordering wood with just a few clicks
The principle behind Timberhub is very simple. Customers can buy wood and wood products online on a platform with a structure similar to that of a web shop. Deliveries are made by truck, depending on the destination, even within just one week. So far, Timberhub has delivered wood and wood products to 22 countries, such as the Netherlands, Germany and Greece. The MENA region is also an increasingly popular destination.
“We source our products from ten different countries. Most of our 65 partners are located in Scandinavia, the Baltic States or the DACH region. We work closely with large sawmills but most of our partners are medium-sized companies. This way, we can guarantee fair prices and certified products of almost all qualities and dimensions,” Pagkratis explains and adds: "On the customer side, we are currently expanding our portfolio. We supply not only the packaging industry but also (timber) construction companies, planing mills and wholesalers.” Pagkratis sees huge potential in the construction industry in particular: “We want to make timber purchasing as transparent and low-threshold as possible and also appeal to traditional construction companies for whom the procurement process has previously been too obscure and too complex. We want to enable and encourage them to use wood instead of non-sustainable materials.”
Major advantages for both sides
On-site quality control: Timberhub’s Tommy Androutselis, Wim Oerlemans and George Theocharis at a partner sawmill in Germany (from left) © Timberhub
Timberhub wants to offer producers as well as processing companies added value. “We always make the best offer, and customer satisfaction is our top priority,” Pagkratis emphasizes. For its steadily growing customer base, the company handles not only the purchasing but also logistics and payment transactions, and acts as an important liquidity buffer for both suppliers and customers. “In the future, we also want to support our partners in complying with all rules and regulations. In addition to certifications, this also includes the highly topical issue of the EUDR,” the young entrepreneur tells us. The online retailer also wants to set new standards in transparency. “On our platform, you can quickly and easily compare various offers anonymously and also track the delivery status online in real time 24/7. In conventional offline business, this is impossible,” Pagkratis explains.
Timberhub is also a lucrative partner for sawmills. In addition to new sales opportunities, the company wants to provide its suppliers with valuable market information and help them market their products more efficiently. “We want to help our suppliers optimize their production and yield by buying all of their products and grades,” Pagkratis explains, summarizing: “Our network keeps growing and so do the benefits for both our customers and our suppliers. Our goal is not only to simplify the purchasing and selling of wood and wood products and increase the transparency of the entire procurement process. We also want to offer our partners significant added value by providing additional services such as market insights, financing or tools for increasing efficiency in production and logistics.”
Ordering wood with just one click
Click here to go to Timberhub’s online platform.
