Three of the largest LTL carriers in the U.S. have celebrated company centennials as other long-running trucking firms were acquired or went out of business in the freight recession of the past two years.
ABF Freight, A. Duie Pyle and Saia have more in common than their shared 100 years in trucking. Executives and drivers at each carrier described similar keys to success in interviews with Trucking Dive.
“They instilled upon us in the very beginning that hard work will get us someplace in life,” said Saia driver Joe Dominguez Jr., who will celebrate 50 years with the carrier next year. “As the years progressed, and we started getting bigger and better ... I think that philosophy kind of stood with us.”
The companies’ stories offer business lessons to others in the trucking industry hoping to emulate their 100-year-old stories of growth and longevity.
As the industry prepares for 2025 and beyond, Trucking Dive rounded up some key takeaways from drivers and executives about what it takes for a carrier to reach 100 years in business.
Dedicate yourself to employees and customers
For most trucking company customers, truck drivers are the most frequent face they see. Paying fairly, creating a strong company culture and visiting with drivers regularly are ways executives can show they understand that.
“We provide industry-leading benefits,” said Seth Runser, now president of ABF Freight’s parent company, ArcBest Corp. “That’s really an advantage for us because we have an experienced workforce who knows how to take care of our customers, which ultimately leads to growth.”
A. Duie Pyle Chairman and CEO Pete Latta likes to talk about how trucking companies don’t manufacture anything.
“We don't make paint,” Latta said in an interview. “We don't make carburetors. We create service for people.”
Pyle provides the trucks, terminals and other resources, but Latta insists that the discretionary effort of the carrier’s workforce is what has made the company successful for a century.
“At the end of the day, it's the people using the tools that determine the effectiveness and the efficiency of the service being provided,” Latta said.
Keep raising the bar
Companies that make it to 100 years in business do so by adapting to challenges and capitalizing on new opportunities as they arise.
Saia keeps a “continuous improvement” mindset, President and CEO Fritz Holzgrefe said in an interview.
“Tomorrow we’ve got to do even better,” he said. “The bar’s been raised. The customer has higher expectations.”
Maintaining a high level of service gets more challenging as carriers grow, because the customer and the employee might be new on any given day.
Holzgrefe said Saia leadership pushes itself to respond to evolving needs and opportunities: “How do we continue to learn, adopt some of these new values, of new folks that are coming into the organization, and build upon that?”
Invest in trucks, technology, real estate — and maybe M&A
You also typically don’t get to be one of the biggest or oldest companies in the country without spending money smartly.
ABF Freight, A. Duie Pyle and Saia all have grown their respective networks alongside their customers with investments in trucks, real estate and technology.
Mergers and acquisitions, key parts of ABF Freight’s and Saia’s stories, haven’t played the same role in A. Duie Pyle’s journey. The family-owned, regional carrier didn’t expand from one terminal until 1996, and it turned down two acquisition offers in the past two years.
But Pyle doesn’t hesitate to invest in its operation, and that’s a primary factor in its success.
“They’re not afraid to spend any money for us to get the job done,” said A. Duie Pyle driver Jeff “Squeak” Young.
