E111: Growing a Freight Brokerage to $765 Million in Revenue

The FreightCaviar Podcast’s latest guest is Steve Cox, the President of Steam Logistics based in Chattanooga, TN. Steve gave us all the details of how Steam, once on the brink of failure, turned things around to hit $765 million in revenue last year. He also talked about the importance of leading by example, his business inspiration, and the secret to success. Let’s dive into some of the highlights from the interview. Thank you to TextLocate.com & ShipperCRM.com for helping us put this episode together. Humble Beginnings and Turning Point Steam Logistics started as the international division of Access America Transport in 2012. After becoming a separate company, they struggled to find their footing for years. There were many points where Steve thought they would fail completely. But after years of persistence, payoff came. In 2019, Steam Logistics reported a revenue of $33 million. They launched their drayage division in the same year, which contributed significantly to their growth. The drayage division grew to $200 million in sales within just two years. By 2022, the company's total revenue jumped to $765 million. The Secret Sauce? Running into brick walls: Steve credits his success to a “fail fast, learn fast” mentality. Even if something doesn’t work, you’ve gotten valuable information from trying. Strong company culture: A focus on the success of employees and offering competitive pay drives growth. Steam invests in its employees professionally and personally. Expect scaling pains: Being prepared for future challenges. Rapid growth brought recruitment and training challenges for Steam as they’ve expanded to 11 branches across the country. Inspiration from Ken Oaks Steve talked about how he “nerds out” any time he has the chance to talk with Ken Oaks, the CEO of Total Quality Logistics (TQL). Despite varying thoughts on the company, Steve says you can’t deny Oaks’ innovation and success of the $8 billion company. Steve says every conversation with Oaks leads to him learning something new that he puts to use at Steam. Leadership Style in a Nutshell Leading from the front Promoting a culture of hustle Persevering through adversity Prioritizing employee growth and development Fostering healthy competition Staying true to the company's vision Being a fearless advocate for the company Preparing for the Future Steve went into detail about how the company is weathering the current downturn and his expectations for the future. He emphasized how now is the time to focus on research, new projects, and experimentation. This "launching pad" strategy aims to position Steam for rapid growth in the future, with the goal to double its revenue in a single year, from $1 billion to $2 billion. To get more insights from Steve Cox, head over to the FreightCaviar to our 00:00 - INTRO 01:45 - Praise of Ken Oaks 02:12 - Power of LinkedIn/Social Media 03:41 - The Story of Steam 07:23 - Growing the business and scaling pains 12:24 - Secrets/BluePrint to Growth? 15:05 - Steam’s Drayage Divison 16:46 - Weathering the Market Downturn 22:37 - Ending Non-Competes 31:06 - More Ken Oaks Inspiration 38:00 - Double Brokers and Steam 41:40 - Steve’s Leadership Style and Business Philosophy 52:11 - Acquiring other companies? 53:59 - Final Thoughts on Non-Competes 55:58 - What does Steve do for fun outside of Logistics?