V3 Transportation began operations in 2013 with just two laptops and two cellphones. Now, the expedited carrier is expanding and moved out of its 3,500-sq.-ft. space in Brunswick, OH, to its new headquarters in Seville, OH.
The move into the new headquarters in Seville is a milestone for V3. The investment in the facility – including the renovation of a space that includes 10,000-sq.ft. of office space and more than 6,000-sq.-ft. of shop space – allows V3 to move forward with plans to add 38 office employees over the next three years, according to the company.
During an Aug. 2 press conference, CEO Bob Poulos explained that the new building gives the company bandwidth to continue growing, noting that the company has been growing 100% every year. President John Sliter added that the company’s revenue is running at a rate of about $25 million this year compared to $12 million last year.
“We quintupled the amount of space we have,” Poulos said. “This building will suit our needs in the current form for three years, and then we’ll build a new facility or expand.”
Poulos added that the new headquarters includes a driver lounge and shower facility to accommodate the company’s owner operators. The fleet’s driver turnover is around 36% this year, Sliter noted.
“This helps with the quality of life for our employees and helps us retain our owner operators,” Poulos said. “Before we had people triple stacked in a closet. We assume that based on our current growth that we’ll outgrow this building in three years. Even though we just moved in, we’re making plans to move into another building in three years.”
The company currently employs 48 workers within operations, customer service and other office positions to support its fleet consisting of 153 trucks featuring 192 expedited drivers – all owner operators. By the end of 2016, V3’s leadership projects that the company’s fleet of sprinter vans, straight trucks and traditional truckload tractor-trailers will reach an overall level of 200 trucks.
“Our primary focus is a straight truck fleet – that’s the bread and butter of any expedited fleet,” Sliter said of adding more truck units by the end of the year. “And hazmat; a lot of our competitors don’t have hazmat drivers. We see that as a real growth and benefit for V3.”
Asked whether e-commerce was playing a role in the carrier’s need to meet the needs of on-demand deliveries, Poulos said not yet, but it was something V3 will likely get into in the future.
“Even though inventory levels are high right now, any bump in the road leads to instant demand for our service,” Poulos said. “We believe the demand for expedited trucking is going to be high.”
Craig Amato, the founder of Panther II Transportation, has joined the team as V3’s investor and senior advisor. Amato mentioned that after he sold Panther, he had been out of the industry for 10 years before re-entering with V3. During that time, he said he’s noticed that there hasn’t been any consolidation and noted that the expedited industry leaders have little competition.
“People are getting fed up with freight ending up on a truck with no insurance,” he said, noting many carriers run with no cargo insurance. “We’re offering quality service that guarantees the service we’re going to provide.”
Besides expanding internally over the next three years, the company is also looking to acquire businesses in the expedited market. Amato noted that V3 is looking at three opportunities now, as well as expansions in Canada and Mexico.
“We want the ability to be more of a one-stop solution to our clients,” Amato explained. “If we can give them a few more solutions to being a one-stop shop, that will definitely help our growth.”
