Northline has opened its new $16 million National Service Centre at 68 King William Street, Kent Town, in Adelaide’s inner eastern suburbs. The custom-designed facility replaces the company’s previous headquarters and will support Northline’s accelerating growth in both domestic and international freight management.
Facility and Workforce
The Kent Town headquarters houses Northline’s national customer service team and administrative support for the company’s freight management, warehousing, distribution, and logistics divisions. The investment comes with plans to add up to 30 new positions across the business nationally, spanning freight management, distribution, and logistics roles.
CEO Craige Whitton highlighted the growth driving the move: “Our international business has increased by 70 per cent in the last 12 months, and the need to enhance our capabilities across IT and logistics has never been stronger.”
Growth Context
The relocation reflects a period of rapid expansion for the 100% Australian-owned operator, which was founded in South Australia in 1983. Northline has added more than 560 international partners across 130-plus countries in recent years through its membership of the Pangea Logistics Network, transforming what was originally a domestic freight company focused on remote northern Australia into a genuinely global operator.
The company now offers end-to-end freight management via road, rail, sea, and air, supported by a national network of depots in Adelaide, Darwin, Alice Springs, Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, and regional centres. The international freight division — which handles customs brokerage, documentation, and global forwarding — has become an increasingly significant revenue contributor.
South Australian Roots
Whitton emphasised Northline’s connection to its home state: “We were founded here in South Australia — it is an important part of our history and our identity.” The Kent Town investment reinforces Adelaide’s role as the operational centre of a logistics business that now reaches more than 130 countries while maintaining its core domestic network servicing some of Australia’s most remote communities.
The new headquarters also signals an investment in digital capabilities, following the launch of Northline’s International Freight Customer Portal in early 2024, which allows customers to manage bookings, track shipments, and handle documentation through a single digital platform.