Seacoast Shipping Services is a logistics company that moves dry bulk commodities - grains, ores, coal, fertilizer - across oceans, roads, and rail, and has recently started trading the agricultural goods it once just shipped. Originally incorporated in 1982 as Mahaan Impex Limited, the business was fundamentally reshaped in 2020 when it was renamed and new promoters took control, bringing with them a proprietorship shipping business and pivoting the company into freight forwarding. The recurring logic is simple: use expertise in moving agro cargo to build a network, then use that network to trade the cargo itself, turning a cost centre into a second revenue stream. # Business segments Two engines that feed each other - a dry bulk shipping and freight-forwarding platform built on decades of experience, and an agricultural trading desk that uses the shipping network to source and move its own goods. ## 1. Dry bulk shipping and freight forwarding: the core logistics engine **The company moves bulk commodities and specialized cargo for miners, traders, and producers globally, earning fees on every tonne shipped by sea, air, road, or rail.** - **Moves all sizes of dry bulk** - it operates across Handy, Supramax, Ultramax, and Panamax vessel classes, with Supramax and Ultramax being the most versatile workhorses, carrying everything from coal and iron ore to fertilizer and steel products. - **More than just ocean freight** - the company bundles shipping with air freight, road transportation, and rail logistics, so a customer can get a single provider for an end-to-end move, including customs clearance, warehousing, and final distribution. - **Handles the cargo others cannot** - it has specialized expertise in temperature-controlled goods, oversized equipment, hazardous materials, and fragile shipments, serving industries like pharmaceuticals, automotive, and aerospace where a broken cold chain or a damaged turbine is a multi-million-dollar problem. - **Technology as a differentiator** - the company has invested in cargo tracking, digital documentation, and online booking portals, giving customers real-time visibility into where their shipment is, which matters when a factory is waiting on a just-in-time delivery. - **Tied to India's industrial cycle** - demand for its services rises and falls with the infrastructure sector, power projects, and industrial construction, particularly the setting up of new plants that require Over Dimensional Consignments - massive equipment that cannot fit on a standard truck. ## 2. Agricultural commodity trading: the network put to work **The company buys wheat, rice, and tomatoes directly from farmers and suppliers, then uses its own shipping muscle to move and sell the goods - turning logistics from a cost into a competitive advantage.** - **Sourcing from the farm gate** - it procures agricultural products directly from farmers and suppliers, cutting out layers of intermediaries and capturing margin that would otherwise go to middlemen. - **The shipping network is the moat** - because the company already moves agro cargo for third parties, it has relationships with ship owners, port operators, and buyers globally, which lowers the cost and friction of trading on its own account. - **Managing the price swings** - agricultural commodity prices are volatile, so the company uses hedging techniques, futures contracts, and diversified sourcing to protect itself from a sudden drop in wheat or rice prices. - **Revenue recognized on delivery** - the company books a sale only when the goods leave its hands and the buyer takes on the risk of ownership, keeping the accounting conservative and tied to physical movement. # Group structure and partners **The company operates as a standalone entity with no subsidiaries, but has a web of related-party relationships and a significant joint-venture proposal that could reshape its physical infrastructure.** - **No subsidiary, no associate** - as of the most recent reporting date, Seacoast Shipping has no subsidiary, joint venture, or associate company, having sold off its only subsidiary, Laxam Commtrade Private Limited, in March 2022. - **A family of related entities** - directors have control over several shipping and logistics firms - Sherman Shipping, Starchart Shipping, Shree Shipping, Terminal 365 - creating a network of companies that operate in the same industry and can share cargo, vessels, and market intelligence. - **A government-backed container freight station** - the company submitted a proposal to the Government of Gujarat to work in joint venture to develop land into a Container Freight Station serving the Morbi, Kandla, and Mundra industrial belts, including a barge service that would slash road movement from 180 kilometres to just 45 nautical miles by sea, with each barge carrying up to 70 containers. - **Ship ownership ambitions** - the board approved an investment of up to USD 20 million to purchase Supramax, Panamax, or Kamsarmax vessels for captive use, a move that would transform the company from a freight broker into an asset-owning ship operator.