What does DHL mean? (all you must know)
DHL is a logistics company mainly owned by Deutsche Post and headquartered in Bonn, Germany. However, while the company is decidedly European today, its roots lie in San Francisco, California.
In fact, the company was founded in 1969 by three American men: Adrian Darcy, Larry Hillbloom, and Robert Lynn. As you might have guessed, founders don’t just lend their business acumen and their name to the company. To learn more about DHL, keep reading!
What does DHL mean in 2022?
DHL comes from the initials of the last names of the three founders of DHL: Adrian Dalsey, Larry Hillblom and Robert Lynn. DHL has many slogans, including “Excellence. Delivered simply” and “We move the world”. The DHL logo is made up of an acronym with three intersecting stripes. The stripes are designed to represent forward movement and speed in 2022.
This article contains more interesting facts about the meaning of the DHL name, tagline and logo, so be sure to read on for more facts!
What do the letters “DHL” stand for?
DHL stands for Dalsey, Hillblom and Lynn.
The acronym comes from the initials of each of the company’s founders: Adrian Dalsey, Larry Hillblom, and Robert Lynn.
While studying law at the University of California, Berkeley, Hillblom began working as a courier at the insurance company Michael’s, Poe & Associates (MPA).
After graduation, Hillblom met Adrian Dalsey and Robert Lynn. Together, the trio plans to expand MPA’s rapid delivery to other commercial enterprises.
What does “DHL” mean in the urban dictionary?
While DHL undoubtedly stands for Dalsey, Hillblom, and Lynn, many other humorous acronyms have popped up over the years.
Many of these acronyms make fun of the company’s services. Some examples include:
- Lost during delivery
- late delivery
- A day and a half late
- dumped, hidden or lost
- drop it, hide it, lose it
What does the DHL slogan mean?
DHL has several slogans. Let’s dive into what each of them means:
One slogan is “Excellence. Simple to deliver.” According to the company, the slogan is more than a slogan — it’s a way of life and a way of doing business.
More specifically, DHL wants to be the best in the world at connecting people and improving their lives.
To achieve this, the company invests heavily in employee training programs that promote the company’s core values and purpose.
Another slogan is “We move the world”.
This reflects the company’s main service (shipping packages), but also hints at its larger goal of keeping the economy and international trade running.
The third DHL slogan is “Yellow. New Brown.” This slogan expresses DHL’s desire to surpass UPS as a major player in the US logistics industry.
What does the DHL logo mean?
Since the company was founded in 1969, there have been 3 versions of the DHL logo.
Some elements like bold, italic fonts have remained fairly consistent over the years, while others have changed.
In the original design, used from 1969 to 1983, the company name was white on a bright red background with white lines separating each letter.
DHL introduced the new logo in 1983 while expanding within the United States. This new version introduces three stripes in the logo, designed to create a sense of movement.
In addition to the stripes, the words “Worldwide Express” became part of the logo. Its purpose is to explain the company’s business to those unfamiliar with the DHL acronym.
DHL’s current logo was introduced in 2002 when it was acquired by Deutsche Post. This version retains the three-stripes and italic font, but adds a yellow background.
What do the 4 pillars of DHL mean?
The Deutsche Post DHL Group is divided into four main divisions, called pillars.
These sectors are express, supply chain, postal e-commerce parcels and global freight.
Let’s take a closer look at what each pillar of the company is responsible for:
Express – As the name suggests, this segment is a leading provider of international express delivery services. Its core business is international time-limited shipping to more than 220 countries.
supply chain – This segment provides customer-focused outsourcing solutions. It is also a trusted outsourcing partner for digital and document workflows.
Postal – E-commerce – Parcel – The department sends around 64 million letters a day in Germany. It also has a range of conversational marketing products to help advertisers reach target groups.
Global Freight – DHL’s fourth division is responsible for air, sea and road transport. Freight forwarding services include standard shipping and multimodal shipping as well as industry-specific solutions.
What do DHL’s values mean?
DHL’s vision is to be Germany’s post office and the world’s logistics company. To accomplish this mission, DHL’s mission statement consists of four elements:
- Making customers, employees and investors more successful
- Show respect while meeting high standards
- Simplify and facilitate the lives of customers
- Contribute to a better world.
To learn more, you can also read our post on DHL eCommerce to find out why DHL is so bad, and how late DHL deliveries are.
in conclusion
What started as a San Francisco-based courier company, DHL has become a global leader in the package delivery and logistics industry.
Its name pays homage to founders Dalsey, Hillblom and Lynn, while its slogan, logo, mission statement and values all point to the company’s future goals.
