Market note

Why an international trader is opening a container shop in Switzerland

October 14, 2026 · Updated October 21, 2026

On 2 October 2026, MG-Atlantic SA put mgcontainer.ch online, a shop for companies, tradespeople and private buyers established in Switzerland. International trading and leasing stay with MG-Atlantic. The new brand answers a demand the maritime market does not serve: a single container, delivered onto a site, without going through a port depot.

At a glance

Key takeaways

In Switzerland, a container is almost always used on land: storage, a construction site, a farm. The buyer wants a delivered unit, not a lot to collect from a depot.
The country has no seaport. Containers arrive up the Rhine to Basel, or by road from depots in Switzerland and in neighbouring countries.
Since 1 January 2024, Switzerland no longer levies customs duties on industrial products. The import is still declared and subject to VAT.
MG Container delivers customs-cleared anywhere in Switzerland within 48 working hours, unloading included, for purchase as well as for rental. Volumes, leasing and export stay with MG-Atlantic.

A container market without a ship

On the maritime market, a container is a piece of transport equipment. It is traded in lots, collected from a port depot against a release, and leaves loaded. The buyer is a shipper, a trader or a shipowner, and arranges the transport.

In Switzerland, the demand is of another kind. The container goes on board no ship: it becomes a storage room on a construction site, a shelter for equipment on a farm, a store for a tradesperson, a municipality or an association. The buyer wants a single unit, set down at a precise place, often at short notice.

This change of use shifts the buying criteria. Watertightness counts for more than fitness for sea carriage. The outside condition counts, because the box will stay visible for years. Access to the site becomes a central question: a truck must be able to manoeuvre and unload. And depending on the municipality, a permit may be required before the container is set down.

The usual maritime circuit does not meet this demand. A port depot does not deliver a unit to Bulle or to Sion, and a private buyer has neither a truck nor access to the depot.

How containers reach Switzerland

Two routes supply the country.

The Rhine, as far as Basel. The Rhine ports of Basel handle most of the containerised Swiss freight that arrives by water from Rotterdam and Antwerp. This flow serves import-export first: the empty containers available for sale there depend on the rotations of the shipping lines.

The road, from depots. Depots in Switzerland and in neighbouring countries receive containers retired from sea carriage and put them up for sale. The right depot depends on the type of unit, its condition and the delivery address, not only on distance.

When the container comes from a depot abroad, crossing the border remains a real step. Since 1 January 2024, Switzerland has abolished customs duties on industrial products, containers included. But the import must still be declared, and import VAT applies at the standard rate of 8.1%. Added to that are the constraints of Swiss road haulage: the heavy-vehicle charge, access to sites, delivery hours.

MG Container takes these steps on itself: each unit is inspected before it leaves, customs-cleared, then delivered onto the buyer's site. The delivery price is calculated online from the postcode.

What MG Container changes for the Swiss buyer

MG Container takes what MG-Atlantic does for its professional clients and makes it available to a tradesperson or a private buyer:

the price shown online, with no prior request for a quotation;

a container delivered customs-cleared: the import declaration and import VAT are taken care of, and the buyer has no formality to complete;

ordering online, with payment by card, TWINT or QR invoice;

delivery anywhere in Switzerland within 48 working hours, unloading included;

the choice between new (one-trip) and used, in 20-foot and in 40-foot High Cube;

rental, for a storage need of a set duration.

The site also offers pages by canton and by city, and practical guides: checking access to the site, preparing the ground, knowing whether a permit is required.

What does not change for MG-Atlantic's clients

Trading in lots, long-term and one-way leasing, SOC solutions, sourcing and repositioning stay with MG-Atlantic, on quotation, from mg-atlantic.com. Both brands belong to the same company, MG-Atlantic SA, established in Geneva, and apply the same standards of inspection and documentation.

The line between the two is simple:

one unit or a few, delivered in Switzerland: MG Container;

lots, depots, ports, export or international leasing: MG-Atlantic.

What this launch says about the market

This note is dated. The 48-working-hour lead time is that of the offer on the day of the launch; it will be revised if the logistics conditions change.

The mechanism holds. Switzerland consumes containers without a seaport, for uses on land, and supplies itself by road and by the Rhine. Serving this market takes units inspected before they leave, customs clearance built into the offer, and a delivery logistics for single units, not a catalogue of port depots.

Questions

Frequently asked questions

Yes. The container is imported for good: the import is declared and import VAT applies at the standard rate of 8.1%. Customs duties were abolished on 1 January 2024 for industrial products. On mgcontainer.ch, the container is delivered customs-cleared: the buyer has no formality to complete.

For one unit or a few delivered in Switzerland, on mgcontainer.ch: prices are shown there and the order is placed online. For volumes, export or international leasing, the request for a quotation is made on mg-atlantic.com.

Rental answers a need limited in time: a construction site, a season, a move. Buying suits a lasting use, and the container keeps a resale value. The guide buying or renting a container compares the two options.

A new container, called one-trip, has made a single crossing: it is clean and looks almost as it left the factory. A used container has served several years at sea; well chosen, it stays watertight, but it shows signs of use. The guide new or used sets out the criteria.

Yes, on quotation. Deliveries of several units, lots and regular needs go through MG-Atlantic's commercial team.

Stock and container types

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Go further

MG Container

MG Container is MG-Atlantic's shop for Switzerland: new and used containers, to buy or to rent, delivered and unloaded on site anywhere in the country.

Visit mgcontainer.chSite in French and German