Supernova's response to economic challenges – How can the 25% growth achieved in 2024 be maintained in such a situation?

The European road transport sector has faced steadily growing challenges in recent years, and 2025 does not promise to be any easier. Economic stagnation continues to limit transport volumes and investment in trucks and trailers. At the same time, Eastern European transport and freight forwarding companies are becoming increasingly competitive in the Hungarian market. Cost control has become a key factor on both sides, while the demand for sustainability continues to grow.

Trends in recent years have shown that consumers are increasingly turning to services, while demand for goods has declined. In response, manufacturing companies reduced their inventories and optimized their operations, resulting in a decline in transportation demand. Due to economic uncertainty, this process began to decline again by the end of 2024.

In Hungary, the transport sector faces additional challengesalongside global ones. The 60% increase in road tolls has placed a serious financial burden on businesses, which is expected to result in a continuous decline in capacity and an increase in freight rates, which is difficult to enforce in this economic environment. According to data from the Central Statistical Office, GDP volume fell by 0.7% compared to the same period last year, while industrial output declined by 4.4%, which directly affects the transport sector.

In this situation, we believe that simply cutting costs is not a solution in itself. Companies need to increase their market share, improve their efficiency, and develop both their human and technological resources. In addition, it is essential to implement an appropriate crisis management strategy, which requires special management and decision-making mechanisms. Companies that proactively manage market changes and implement appropriate strategies can gain a competitive advantage even in a difficult economic environment.

How can we prevent this situation? – Supernova's strategy: NovaPartner Program and human resources development

Despite the downturn in the transport sector and the uncertain economic environment, we successfully increased our number of shipments and sales revenue, proving that with the right strategic approach, challenges can be turned into opportunities.

As second-generation leaders with many years of experience behind us, we have already experienced numerous ups and downs in the industry. Thanks to this, we recognized in time that mere cost reduction is not a sufficient response to market challenges— a proactive escape strategy is needed. We chose the path of development rather than reduction.

Observing market trends, we saw that declining capacities and rising costs forced many market players to adopt a wait-and-see approach. However, we had already begun our transformation earlier: we focused on increasing our operational efficiency, targeted developments, and strengthening our customer relationships.

This forward-thinking approach enabled us not only to survive this period, but also to achieve a 25% increase in sales revenue while expanding our number of shipments. Even in challenging times, there are opportunities for growth—the key is strategic thinking and proactive action.

One of our key responses to the current situation is the NovaPartner program, which provides targeted support to smaller transport companies. This cooperation enables partners to reduce their equipment investment costs, optimize their operations, and thus ensure stable transport capacity for their businesses. This program is a true win-win solution: it provides long-term opportunities for carriers, while Supernova, as a key player in the market, can work with reliable partners in the future.

Supernova Intertrans is now Hungary's third largest international freight forwarding and transport company with its own fleet . We have achieved significant growth in recent years, thanks to more than 100 domestic and international subcontractors.

In addition, Supernova pays special attention to human resource development. Our goal is to increase efficiency in all areas —transportation , trade, finance— thereby offering even more competitive services to our partners. Furthermore, the training and development of our drivers is also a top priority for us. In addition to training the new generation of drivers, we place great emphasis on the continuous development of our existing driver pool in order to further raise our professional standards.

Our comprehensive crisis strategy therefore not only focuses on cost reduction and survival, but also actively builds for the future. The NovaPartner Program and our human resources development initiatives together ensure that our company and our partners will emerge stronger from the current economic situation.