U.S. Xpress subsidiary Total Transportation of Mississippi will maintain its own brand, operations and workers following a pending acquisition by Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings, according to a securities filing released Thursday.
Total Transportation of Mississippi CEO and President Craig Savell stressed in an employee message that the company will retain separate operations and will not lay off workers.
Savell’s assurances came after Knight-Swift unveiled a plan on Tuesday to acquire U.S. Xpress for approximately $808 million.
“They have a long history of retaining separate brands with some names like Swift Transportation, Barr-Nunn, Abilene, and AAA Cooper,” Savell said. “We’ll be joining that group of brands as a separate operating company.”
U.S. Xpress will also keep its branding under Knight-Swift, the companies previously said.
Phone calls went out to Total Transportation of Mississippi drivers to reassure them that the organization is stable, secure and operating as usual, Savell said.
Current senior management at the subsidiary, including Savell, will remain, the CEO said. That’s in contrast to U.S. Xpress, which will see several executives leave once the deal closes, including CEO and President Eric Fuller, Co-Founder and Executive Chairman Max Fuller and CFO Eric Peterson.
Knight-Swift and U.S. Xpress previously cited Total Transportation of Mississippi as a standout, with the company’s irregular route truckload contributing 14% to U.S. Xpress’s total revenue last year. Knight-Swift also referred to it in an investor presentation as a profitable, well-run TL carrier.
