Trailer Bridge CEO Shares Secret for Driving Company Growth
Trailer Bridge was recently presented with not one but two awards by the Jacksonville Business Journal (JBJ) honoring the company’s substantial growth over the past three years.
Trailer Bridge was named to the JBJ Fast 50 list made up of the fastest-growing companies in Northeast Florida based on percent growth. In addition, Trailer Bridge made the publication’s dollar-volume list created in conjunction with the Fast 50 list, which ranks companies by largest dollar volume increases.
JBJ Editor-in-Chief Timothy Gibbons described the dual awards saying, “Making both the percentage and volume list is truly a feat, one that only a small handful of companies do.”
When asked what contributes to the massive growth, Trailer Bridge CEO Mitch Luciano said, “It really comes down to our people. They care about each other and that is then mirrored in how we treat our customers and partners outside the organization.”
Trailer Bridge has grown its revenue more than 53% from 2019 to 2021 and concurrently grew its team by 41%. The company added logistics branches throughout the U.S., as well as built a division focused on government freight and a NVOCC team designed to handle international freight moving to destinations around the globe.
“As you grow your organization, you must hire the right people. For us that means hiring for skills, yes, but also the person with the ‘it’ factor – are they kind, do they have energy and drive,” said Luciano. “Then you give them the opportunity to grow, get out of their way and watch them blossom.”
The company recently launched a team solely focused on employees training and development to support its continued growth. The team, led by Vice President of Organizational Development Indie B. Bollman, is focused on developing and delivering job-specific training as well as soft skills training, onboarding new employees, assisting in leadership education and more.
“Our people are our priority at Trailer Bridge. Investing in them is not only key to sustaining our growth, it’s also an important part of our culture of service and it’s the right thing to do,” said Bollman. “Our new Training and Development group is a big part of that, giving our team members the opportunity to, not only learn and grow in their current role, but prepare for the one they want next.”
This is not the first award Trailer Bridge has received for its recent growth. In 2021, the company was named to the Inc. 5000 list of the fastest-growing private companies in the U.S. It has also received other accolades including Inc. Best Places to Work, Jacksonville Business Journal Best Places to Work, Logistics Management No. 1 Ocean Carrier in 2019 and more.
As Luciano looks to the future, he says the company will continue to grow its logistics division, adding branches and services to match the needs of its customers, increase the focus on the growth of its NVOCC and government divisions as well as faithfully supporting the needs of the people of Puerto Rico.
For other business leaders looking to achieve growth, Luciano offered this advice, “Have a plan and be patient. There will be bumps in the road, don’t be quick to change and communicate everything often and always, and most importantly love your people.”
Trailer Bridge was founded in 1991 by Malcom McLean, coined the “Father of Containerization” for his work to revolutionize the movement of cargo, to serve the Caribbean market. Today, the company operates 17 offices throughout North America and the Caribbean offering a full supply chain solution including ocean service, domestic trucking, intermodal, drayage, international shipping and more.
