F E AT U R E
Two years later he left Velocity to
work for AirNet. As Vice President of
Sales for the Eastern US, Chris helped
grow the company, which focused on
the banking industry. “The company
owned and operated 138 airplanes.
Our charge was to move cancelled
checks around the US,” he says. “The
operation was impressive. In fact,
the best way I had to close a sale
was to bring them to our facility in
Columbus, OH so they could watch
our planes take off at 70 second inter-
vals starting at 3:30 a.m. They were
headed for every major city in the
US. It was an amazing system. When
you think of how much money was
involved, it’s breathtaking. We were
moving checks that were presented
to the banks all over the country. It’s
something you couldn’t help but be
impressed with.”
All that changed on September
11, 2001. AirNet had the last plane
up before the attack and the first
plane back up when flying resumed.
But the impact for the industry long-
term was significant. “I think 9/11
really pushed the Check 21 and
Imaging process changes along and
that changed our business model
dramatically,” he says.
Chris stayed with AirNet for two
years and left in 2004 to work for
CD&L For the next two years he built
their sales organization. By 2006, he
was ready to start his own company.
“I met Dan Ayer at CD&L and when
it was purchased by Velocity we
decided we were ready to strike out
on our own,” he says. “On Sept. 16,
2006, we started Customer Courier
Solutions, Inc. in Saratoga Springs,
NY. We worked out of my home and
on Dan’s kitchen table. One of the
first things we did was to become
part of the Dynamex Franchise
network. I met them through
the association (which was then
called the Messenger and Courier
Association) and I felt it would be a
productive relationship. It has been.”
Today, Customer Courier
Solutions provides full-service courier
and distribution services to Upstate
New York, New England and the Mid-
Atlantic. They offer their customers
scheduled service, on-demand, dis-
tribution services, and warehousing,
home delivery and full logistics ser-
vices. Among their high profile cus-
tomers are those from the banking,
pharm, office products, retail, auto-
motive, manufacturing and freight
forwarding. The company that
started from Chris’ Home now has
11 locations, 225,000 square feet of
warehouse space and is responsi-
ble for 11,580 scheduled deliveries
per week. They now provide service
from the Canadian border down to
Virginia Beach.
ASSOCIATION INVOLVEMENT
Chris credits his relationships
with CLDA as a key part of his growth.
Rob Slack introduced him to the
association in the mid-1980s when
it was the MCAA. Chris held leader-
ship posts culminating in his presi-
dency from 2011 to 2012. He was an
active member of the board before
that. One of his most long-stand-
ing commitments was his 12 years
term heading up the association’s
Government Affairs Committee.
As part of that work, he served as
the voice of the industry, testifying
before the Senate Health, Education,
Labor, and Pensions Subcommittee
on Employee and Workplace Safety
in favor of the independent con-
tractor model in November 2013. “It
was one of the highlights of my pro-
fessional life,” he confesses. “I was
honored to represent this industry as
the only witness for the Republican
minority.”
27
By then, Chris had become
the association’s president, having
moved through the positions as the
board’s secretary, treasurer, second
VP and heading up the Annual
Meeting Committee.
The award was presented to
Chris by the man who hired him as he
moved up in the industry, Rob Slack.
“We owe this man a debt of gratitude
for all he’s done for the industry,”
Slack said. In accepting the award
Chris said, “This is an extreme honor
but something I could not have
done without the people around
me, including my business partner,
Dan Ayer and all the friends in this
association I’ve made over the years.
This association wouldn’t be where
we are at a national level without the
people it his room who have given
their time and their financial support.
When I started as a driver in 1982 I
never would have dreamed I’d be
up here one day!” His remarks were
greeted with a standing ovation.
As he looks back on his career
and his role with the association,
Chris says induction into the CLDA
Hall of Fame is one of the high points.
“This award recognizes the efforts
that members of the Hall of Fame
have put forth for the organization