CCJ Innovators profiles carriers and fleets that have found innovative ways to overcome trucking’s challenges. If you know a carrier that has displayed innovation, contact CCJ Editor Jeff Crissey at [email protected] or 800-633-5953.
During the worst of the recession in January 2009, Dallas-based investor Don Daseke and trucking industry veteran Dan Wirkkala acquired the assets of Smokey Point Distributing for $34 million. The Arlington, Wash.-based specialty hauler became the first open-deck carrier in Daseke’s company.
At the time, Daseke, chairman and chief executive officer, recognized the growth potential of a highly fragmented $133 billion segment of the trucking market and began actively pursuing new acquisitions. By the end of 2013, Daseke had acquired flatbed carriers E.W. Wylie, J. Grady Randolph, Central Oregon Truck Co. and The Boyd Companies (including Boyd Bros. Transportation, WTI Transport and Mid Seven Transportation) to become one of the five largest flatbed carriers in North America.
The acquisitions of Lone Star Transportation, Bulldog Hiway Express and Hornady Transportation in 2014 and 2015 earned Daseke the top spot in the flatbed/specialized/heavy haul segment and the 42nd spot overall in the 2016 CCJ Top 250 ranking of the industry’s top for-hire carriers.
While geography was important to the company’s growth strategy, Daseke focused more on companies that represented the “best and brightest” leadership in the trucking industry. That goal is reflected in the many recognitions Daseke companies receive, including the Truckload Carriers Association’s Best Fleets to Drive For program and numerous industry safety awards.
Going public
On Feb. 28, after a merger with Hennessy Capital Acquisition Corp., Daseke went public and began trading on the Nasdaq Capital Market.
