Clay Curran, CEO and co-founder of FreshX, dives into the dynamic world of refrigerated LTL logistics. He shares his entrepreneurial path and highlights the pivotal changes FreshX underwent to become a tech-driven marketplace connecting brokers with over 80 carriers. Discussing the challenges of capacity visibility and specialization in the reefer market, he outlines how FreshX aims to unlock hidden capacity. Clay also offers valuable advice for aspiring entrepreneurs, stressing the importance of adaptability and understanding real industry problems.
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question_answer ANECDOTE
FreshX's First Pivot Story
FreshX started as a last mile delivery carrier for food and beverage using gig worker drivers.
They pivoted after discovery that reefer LTL logistics upstream was a bigger problem for their customers.
insights INSIGHT
Reefer LTL Carrier Specialization
Reefer LTL carriers are highly specialized with niche routes, temperatures, and commodities.
This specialization allows profitable consolidation but complicates market visibility and pricing.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Building Carrier Trust In Person
Early onboarding was slow with only one carrier partner for two months.
In-person visits to carrier facilities unlocked trust and cooperation that phone calls did not.
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Andrew welcomes Clay Curran, CEO and cofounder of FreshX, a young company tackling the tricky reefer LTL space. Clay shares his entrepreneurial journey, marked by a willingness to pivot that has shaped both his personal career trajectory and the FreshX business model. Today, FreshX is a marketplace that connects brokers with more than 80 reefer LTL carriers.
In this episode, Clay also covers:
His path to entrepreneurship and early lessons learned from his entrepreneurial parents.
The evolution of FreshX, including two major pivots from a last-mile delivery carrier to a reefer LTL brokerage, and finally to its current iteration as a tech-driven marketplace.
The challenges and nuances of the reefer LTL market, including carrier specialization, capacity visibility, and the difficulties brokers face in sourcing reliable options.
How FreshX is working to unlock hidden capacity and digitize pricing by building relationships with more than 80 reefer LTL carriers and providing a "Google Flights-like" platform for brokers.
His advice for aspiring entrepreneurs in the freight industry, emphasizing the importance of good advisors, rapid iteration, and deeply understanding the real problems you're trying to solve.
*** This episode is brought to you by Rapido Solutions Group. I had the pleasure of working with Danny Frisco and Roberto Icaza at Coyote, as well as being a client of theirs more recently at MoLo. Their team does a great job supplying nearshore talent to brokers, carriers, and technology providers to handle any role necessary, be it customer or carrier support, back office, or tech services. Visit gorapido.com to learn more.
A special thanks to our additional sponsors:
Cargado – Cargado is the first platform that connects logistics companies and trucking companies that move freight into and out of Mexico. Visit cargado.com to learn more.
Greenscreens.ai – Greenscreens.ai is the AI-powered pricing and market intelligence tool transforming how freight brokers price freight. Visit greenscreens.ai/freightpod today!
Metafora – Metafora is a technology consulting firm that has delivered value for over a decade to brokers, shippers, carriers, private equity firms, and freight tech companies. Check them out at metafora.net. ***
The Freight Pod 