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F E AT U R E
work adding other verticals
like deliveries of pharmaceuti-
cals, industrial supplies, routed
and scheduled deliveries, wa-
rehousing, home delivery and
air freight delivery,” he recalls.
“We handled most everything
under the 3PL umbrella.”
The business was a success and
in January 2014, John sold it to
his two partners. Through his
connections at the CLDA, John
had worked closely with Matt
Lawrence, and Casey Crook the
two owners of Pace. Matt was
also on the CLDA board. In
April 2014, he joined with Matt
and Casey as Director of Ope-
rations at Pace.
A Front Row Seat on Industry
Changes
John joined the organization
in 2005 when it was the Mes-
senger and Courier Associa-
tion. After only 18 months as
an active member, his passion
for the industry attracted the
attention of then-board mem-
ber Kirk Godby. “Kirk
recruited me early on to join
the board and from there I took
on more and more responsibi-
lities,” recalls John. He chaired
committees that covered sta-
te associations, vendor deve-
lopment, membership and, for
the past six year, the associa-
tion’s influential Government
Affairs Committee (GAC). He
moved through the ranks of
the association’s Executive
Committee, most recently hol-
ding the position of First Vice
President for the last two years.
Over time, he’s seen many
changes, including a new iden-
tity for the association as the
Customized Logistics and De-
livery Association. John was
extensively involved in the re-
branding of the association in
2013 as it adapted to changes in
the industry. nally-based delivery services, our
platforms lend themselves to fle-
xibility, nimbleness and the ability
to customize our services. For me,
those are the most exciting chan-
ges in our industry.”
“During my time with this or-
ganization, the membership
has grown from moving small
packages and paper into much
more than that. When I star-
ted most of our members spent
the majority of their time doing
small on-demand pickups and
deliveries,” he recalls. “That
market has, of course, seriously
diminished and today our mem-
bers have expanded into white
glove, threshold, E-commerce,
LTL work and a host of other ver-
ticals that require different and
larger equipment. With the ad-
vent of Amazon and Google and
the large retailers, E-commerce
has shifted retail from bricks
and mortar to on-line. That has
given a tremendous boost to
our members. The ‘I need so-
mething immediately’ mentality
of the consumer has radically
changed our industry. And it
continues to evolve. I think the
most dramatic illustration of
that was the fervent response
we got from members at the An-
nual Meeting. They were so en-
thusiastic about the significant
presence of shippers looking
for last-mile delivery providers
at that meeting in May. As we
continue to see that evolution
happen it presents a unique
opportunity for our members.
They are uniquely positioned to
take advantage of those oppor-
tunities. We are a just-in -time,
nimble group of folks. We are
adept at moving freight that fits
the complexity of E-commerce.
Unlike larger players or natio- Bringing Business Home to Mem-
bers
John plans for the association
during his upcoming tenure are
all about driving business to the
members. “I want to build on the
association’s recent successes get-
ting shippers involved in this orga-
nization,” he says. “I also want to
continue doing everything we can
to support the association’s goals
of solidifying and clarifying the in-
dependent contractor status and I
expect to continue building coa-
litions with other industry groups
involved in the supply chain.”
Citing the association’s past
strength in networking, education
and legislation, John talks about
adding what he calls “a fourth
leg to that stool” – business de-
velopment. “I want to build on
the momentum we got at the last
annual meeting,” he says. “I want
members to say to themselves ‘We
are going to get business if we join
because we’ll get governmental
advocacy, networking and educa-
tional content as well as contacts
that will help us grow our busi-
ness. I want CLDA to be seen as an
association that, if you don’t join,
you’ll feel you’re at a competitive
disadvantage. I expect us to move
forward on our value proposition
of bringing business home to eve-
ry member.”
To reach John with your com-
ments, suggestions and questions,
contact him at [email protected].
Customized Logistics and Delivery Association | Fall 2016