Starting a Small Trucking Company (What You May Not Know)

Starting a Small Trucking Company in 2023 (What You May Not Know) In this video, Dave covers what a business person needs to know about starting and managing a small trucking company operation in 2023.
1.The Drivers. Comes with challenges and problems.
2. The Trucks. Need care, managing.
3. Start Up Costs. Can be very expensive for one truck... much more for multiple trucks of course.
4. Managing the Operation. Need a dispatcher, bookkeeper, lots of recordkeeping etc.
5. Credit Line or Lots of $$ - Cash Flow is important to keep Accts Payable healthy, until Accts. Receivable catch up.
6. 5 Trucks Can Be the Magic Number.
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PLEASE NOTE: THIS VIDEO CONTAINS PAID SPONSORSHIP ADVERTISING FOR GP TRANSCO.
Here's a link to check out their site and find out if they're a good fit for you. Do take the time to check out their website, www.gptransco.com/
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[@SmartTrucking]

Hey there Driver. Thanks for dropping around to watch today's video. How about you? Any desire to start a small trucking company? Maybe you already have a few trucks on the road and are thinking of expanding? I'd love to hear what your thoughts and experiences are with increasing the number of trucks you operate.

[@rogerpaulsen5881]

I had 3 trucks at one time. Shitty drivers didn't care about the truck. Then I figured out why they were looking for a job when they came to me. 1 truck and nobody drives it but me.

[@erickucharski4127]

Great video and dead on point. I was a small fleet owner some years back there is a lot of stuff to keep track of never mind keeping costumer happy and trying to find new ones.

[@threehemis5566]

I was an owner operator for several years. I had an old 2005 International 9900ix. Sold it a couple years ago to become a Co driver again as I noticed the money I was making was not increasing nowhere near the rising costs of repairs, fuel etc. Opposite of what you mentioned in the video, that old truck never once needed a tow or even a major breakdown where I couldn't limp it back to the shop. The breakdowns were always in the terminal yard, now sometimes they were big but just nice that it was reliable onnthe road at least. I miss that old truck! In contrast, brand new 2023 Peterbilt 567 towed back from Whitby On to Stoney Creek On within the 1st few months! Keep the videos coming, love story time. I remember in the 70's as a young kid standing along hwy 6 South of Hamilton watching all those old school beautiful striped trucks going back and forth out of Domtar in Caledonia. Those memories influenced me to get into trucking in 1999. I feel fortunate that old school truckers like you trained me.

[@waynesworld2086]

I say if ya have a ride just run your LLC and lease on to a outfit that has their own brokerage agency and their own direct customers and will pay your ride a fair % and yes that's hard to find then only worry bout the high $ fuel, till the industry straightens up a bit don't get ya own authority but also stay positive etc etc, yall guys stay safe

[@fredbezemer394]

Good day are you guy's ever going to have the live streams again? Dave keep educating the new and challenged drivers this industry is going downhill fast more training and safe driving practices needed to be discussed in 45 years I've never seen so many horrific crashes lately mostly from distracted drivers to following to close and most of all aggressive drivers when will the insanity stop???

[@osbaldo8942]

Thats why my small fleet runss debt free no paymemts at all 👍🏾👍🏾thank god

[@3177288]

Great video!!

[@jamiemcdole4518]

I have always heard that a odd number fleet tends to make more money then even fleets. My father said to have three to five trucks that's the best.

[@theromulanwarhawk]

What about marketing your business to prospective customers and costs and different types of permits. Great video!

[@gearjammer81]

Love the new logo and colors!

[@SmartTrucking]

Hey thanks! Yes, we love it too.

[@clintfipps7312]

You forgot about insurance, specifically workman's comp. That is an added cost going up every year. I was running a small trucking LLC. Starting in 2015 I bought a new truck and paid it off, then I thought about another truck and hiring someone to put in it and grow my company; with new trucks every so many years, but I looked around and woke up to reality. No one today has a work ethic like mine, I am on the job before dark thirty and put in the work, conscientious about the quality of service I give my leaseholders and my customers...but that attitude today is rare. My friends had employees that would drink or whatever and not show up to work early, or they would drag ass all day, hang out and shoot the crap with others, etc. Paid by the hour or the load etc. did not matter. Not worth it. I stay with one tractor-trailer and concentrate not so much on quantity but quality work. It pays off in the long run looking back.

[@SoCal780]

All of these headaches are what have kept me a single truck operation. We have a few fleet owners where I am leased. If they can find decent drivers, they make good money. If not, their trucks sit.

[@SmartTrucking]

Yes, indeed. More often than not, it just not work out as planned. Make the best $ running on your own.

[@kev9617]

Looking to start a passive side hustle, is box trucking fleets viable

[@johnathanfarquhar1981]

I remember a driver was mad because no one could opperate his special transmissions he had in his trucks. They were old refurbished autocar tractors with multi stick.

[@jasonduke3608]

Hey Dave, no I don't have any desire to even own a truck now. My dream was to have a freightliner glider, but the cab slightly extended so I can have a fridge big enough to have enough food for as long as I was out. I been driveing 8+ years now and it just doesn't seem worth it. I'm sad because I watch alot of truck vlogs and some of them seem to be doing ok. I used to work for an owner operator for a while it was ok. He was a really nice guy but he had terrible luck choosing trucking companies. I stayed with him through 2 companies both are now out of business. The 1st one they robbed him and I blind. They wouldn't pay us and when he needed work on the truck they said they will fix it but didn't. I remember he showed me for one week that I ran they paid him just$5 for the truck. That made him quit. When they found out I was leaving they vandalized the truck. He had to get it towed and all my stuff was either destroyed or stolen. I can't even imagine dealing with that as an owner. The 2nd company was not that much better but we stayed with them for a year. They pushed me hard. This was when I was driving 20 hours at a time. Once I was somewhere in Montana hauling 43000 of dog food. Climbing very steep mountains and jakeing all the way down. The truck had a electric gear splitter. I was way out in the middle of nowhere and the splitter decided to break. Could'nt get out of low gear. The closest mechanic was a few hours away and they wanted $1000 just for a service run. My owner drove out to me from Michigan. He brought what he thought he needed found out he needed more. I just remember going hungry for a few days. So yeah, I'm not going to be an owner any time soon.

[@bigcuntryify]

I learned the hard way don't grow to fast. We went from one truck to 40 in a year terrible. Mor money more problems.

[@jerrykinnin7941]

If your not a mechanic. If your don't have a shop and a place to park your fleet/hang your shingle. A shop at the place to do preventative maintenance. If your wife don't understand then it won't work. Dad had at one time 3 trucks 2 drivers were great with their trucks 1 truck couldn't keep a good driver. That 1 truck cost dad all 3. Dad was a broker/dispatcher step mom was everything else. There are highs and lows Budget the swing. Throw out the highs and lows. I'm just a company driver working local for a 3rd generation full service outfit. I've seen Alot of mistakes made and some success as well. To start you'll need a lawyer banker CPA. and the ability to sell an Eskimo an ice cream cone in a blizzard.

[@poireauer6517]

@ Jerry 👍👍

[@mark93cobr]

I learned the hard way back in 2006. Bigger isn't necessarily better. The nightmares that came up were crazy. NOBODY you can hire will do it like you do it. Trucking is an absolutely brutal industry and the quickest way to find out for yourself is to add a truck or two. Even after all the lessons I've learned I would never try it again. Don't forget drivers will put you out of business by being put OOS. They destroyed my safety rating and got me targeted at the scales.

[@heaveymelt]

People that are new to driving this is good info, i was always to scared todo it seen way to many guys lose everything, or sell off at a loss and dont forget luck plays into this as well because of repairs, insurance claims and many other things and then they try to grow and lose everything 5 years down the road because of bad drivers wrecking there insurance the owner of company starts spending money like hes a big shot and the trucks cant cover the cost they then ask for more money from company ther hauling for and the company says nope ill just use the new guy that will do it cheaper.

[@joelabraham1263]

Getting your own authority might not be such a good idea. But if you got like 2-3 truck and lease it onto a company where there’s plenty of work. But then you won’t be making crazy profits, is that worth it in a way?

[@xgb6000]

If you buy used DONT buy anything that has more than 300k miles. This goes for any of the newer trucks from 2010-now. The new emissions systems are going to fail slowly around 400-500k miles. Big carriers know this and thats why they dump them off around that mileage. Dont be a sucker for the leftover scraps bc it will eat at your money every month. Not worth the risk just get an older truck the parts are easier to find and cheaper.

[@yeverett4533]

I have a friend who is an owner-operator who claims he's earning $20K monthly net profit. Is this possible or common for owner-operators to earn this amount?

[@davidallen3873]

Great video iPhone my magic number when I was in the business actually it's two is either one truck or 10 anything in between didn't work for me

[@Mr10packs]

Inflation went up 50 percent 😤

[@sisutrucks]

it's a lot easier ways to make money, I have 3 rigs and wanting to go down to just the one I drive myself, or even better if can find another job for myself too. it's just a shitty business with costs running like crazy.

[@ilovechevysmallblocks]

Advice for an 18 year old aspiring to become a trucker?

[@truckingwithtobee]

If I can advise him if they’re trying to open up a trucking business right now, don’t do it. We have a small 2 truck fleet. And it takes so much money to run these trucks. We are lucky that we find fuel at three dollars and 76 a gallon. So an average it’s anything else between 40 and $50 per day comparatively went to the other gas station that is near where we have our routes. And with everything that’s going on right now in the country with them trying to do the centralized, banking and banks, feeling, etc. I would absolutely not get involved in something like that you will lose your ass. do you know how hard it was to find good drivers out of six drivers that we’ve had through the seven years only one of them was worth a shit. One of those drivers blew up one of our engines going over the El Cajon pass fully loaded at 80 miles an hour and blew the engine when we told him to go the other way around. Another driver was a woman and she had nothing but problems every damn day calling in. which made us lose our loads. etc. Ultimately that’s why I went and got my license last year. If you want things done right you have to do it yourself.🤷🏼‍♀️ Everything he is saying in this video is spot on! we have older trucks, though my husband has pretty much able to fix everything because he keeps on top of everything. He’s attention to the trucks. Knock on wood we’ve only had to have one of our trucks towed one time and that was when the engine blew. Most truck drivers I know that are in those new trucks have more problems than we do with our 07 Kenworth W 900’s

[@douglaspowell7627]

Impossible in 🇨🇦 now.😡😡

[@Logtruckife317]

How many trucks do you own

[@cruzinsweetsntreats]

Created in 2022? 7:23 Yet posted March 24, 2023? Interesting 🤔

[@SmartTrucking]

That is incorrect my friend. The quote in the video compared the last 2 years of trucking costs. 2022 and 2023 comparison wouldn't be very helpful on March 24, 2023 would it? 😉

[@corylangford5658]

At this rate Knight will own everything... They need to be stopped...

[@CarbonNeutral22]

Trucks are just a great way to loose money The more you have the more you loose

[@lewthrasher5865]

If you're thinking of working for these small guys then consider doing it on your own . Forget these small guys

[@dannygingerich2360]

Anti small carriers? 👎👎