| Conway freight has successfully changed the notion | | | | was that Conway freight employees operated on a |
| that LTL carriers cannot provide service the next | | | | profit-sharing model, which enriched efficiency as well |
| day. At the time when the industry was filled with | | | | as productivity. |
| skeptics on the subject, John Labrie saw a huge | | | | Knowing Shippers |
| potential in this line of thought. | | | | Conway freight has always inculcated a sense of |
| The Service At The Time | | | | personal touch in its freight truck drivers. Right from |
| During the 1990s, it was mostly express carriers who | | | | knowing customers and their specific requirements |
| were providing services the next day with small | | | | when it came to their freight, the truck drivers also |
| packages. However, it was virtually unheard of for | | | | doubled up as frontline personnel. Thus, drivers |
| trucking companies to perform next day type | | | | started to become the touch point with the |
| services within distances of 500 miles. At the time, | | | | customers of Conway freight. |
| no carrier other than Conway freight was providing | | | | Future Expansions |
| these kinds of services. Most customers did not | | | | Very soon Conway freight began to expand its |
| believe when Conway freight informed them of their | | | | operations during the later part of the 80s and the |
| unique services next day. Several times, customers | | | | early 90s and these included Con-way Southwest |
| would even provide shipments to prove the | | | | Express as well as Con-way Southern Express. Within |
| company wrong! However, this service worked and | | | | a decade of its inception and operations, the Conway |
| customers started demanding more of such services, | | | | freight company had quickly escalated to become a |
| which eventually led to an expansion in its regional | | | | 7600 strong workforce and had 300 locations of |
| next-day type services. This trend still continues till | | | | operations spread across 32 states. The overall |
| date. | | | | revenues exceeded 800 million dollars and the |
| Early Business Model | | | | company had a steady fleet of 13660 tractors, |
| In the early days of its inception, Conway freight | | | | trucks as well as trailers. |
| followed a business model, which centered on service | | | | Phenomenal Growth |
| to customers. The presence of a workforce, which | | | | As can be seen, Conway freight has enjoyed a |
| did not have a union also entailed that trucks | | | | growth from a startup organization without any |
| continued to function with their shipments | | | | customers to a booming business, which serves more |
| irrespective of whether the trailers were filled or not. | | | | than 100000 customers everyday within Mexico, |
| However, in sharp contrast, most of the other LTL | | | | Canada, US as well as Puerto Rico. Conway freight is |
| carriers at the time were unionized and hence only | | | | the shining example of true innovation and that a |
| moved their trucks when they had full loads. The | | | | pioneering thought can transform into a successful |
| other primary difference between Conway freight | | | | business. |
| and several of its counterparts during the early years | | | | |