DHL Supply Chain is a division of Deutsche Post DHL and is affiliated with DHL. Headquartered in Bonn, Deutsche Post has 510,000 employees. In 2016, DHL Supply Chain was primarily competing in strategic life sciences and healthcare, automotive and technology sectors of the market. The automotive sector, with its Lead Logistics Provider (LLP) service, has been shifting to China, India and Mexico as those countries become significant vehicle and parts manufacturers. In Canadian and USA markets DHL Supply Chain operated under the name Exel until January 2016. In 2016, the DHL Supply Chain division's revenue decreased by 11.6% to €14.0 billion versus 2015, but operating profit improved by 27.4% to €572 million. History 1969 – DHL founded by Adrian Dalsey, Larry Hillblom and Robert Lynn in San Francisco. 1971 – DHL expands its Express network rapidly and becomes a trusted partner of many companies. Expansion into the Far East and Pacific Rim. 1972 – Services introduced in Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore and Australia. 1974 – The first UK office is opened in London. Globally, DHL now has 3,052 customers and 314 staff. 1976–1978 – Expansion in three major regions as DHL launches in the Middle East, Latin America and Africa. 1977 – The first German DHL office is opened in Frankfurt. 1979 – DHL extends its services to delivering packages. Only document services had been available until now. 1983 – DHL is the first air express forwarder to serve Eastern European countries. An international distribution center (hub) is opened in Cincinnati, USA. 1985 – A state-of-the-art hub is opened in Brussels. More than 165,000 shipments are handled each night. 1986 – DHL enters into a joint venture with the People's Republic of China and becomes the first express company active in China. 1990 – DHL enters into strategic alliances with Lufthansa, Japan Airlines and Nissho Iwai. 1991 – DHL becomes the first international express company to restart service to Kuwait after the Gulf War. 1993 – DHL invests 60 million dollars in a new hub facility in Bahrain. 1998 – Deutsche Post becomes a shareholder in DHL. 2002 – Deutsche Post World Net becomes the major shareholder in DHL from 1 January. By the end of the year, the company owns 100 percent of the DHL shares. 2003 – Deutsche Post, DHL and Postbank make up the Group's current brand architecture. DHL now serves as the exclusive brand for all