Right now our systems administrator, John Ebel, has a lot of job security. This week John is in Florence, SC, where he’s setting up the communications infrastructure for our new Southeastern Regional Office. And just last month, he was in Rockwall, TX, prepping for the opening of our Southwestern Regional Office. My aim is to keep John traveling in 2007; my hope is that he has signed up for a frequent flyer program.
We’re only two months into the New Year and LMS has already opened two new regional offices. Though proudly rooted in St. Louis, we’re excited to expand into other regions and look forward to opening a total of six offices in 2007. As noted in the January 19 edition of the St. Louis Business Journal, we’ve got our sights set on several strategic markets, including Chicago and Los Angeles.
The new branches augment our current operations, which include our Supply Chain Solutions and Dedicated Services groups, but there will be a heavier focus on the latter. Our Supply Chain Solutions group caters to companies looking to outsource some or all of their transportation management technology and/or functions. LMS’ Dedicated Services group works with shippers with short-term freight management needs – anything from finding the ideal carrier to move a single load to managing a series of lanes on an ongoing basis.
LMS is opening these branches because we continue to see a need for the type of offerings provided by Dedicated Services. Market factors, such as rising fuel prices and tightening capacity levels, have complicated the carrier selection process. Now more than ever it makes sense to partner with a provider that has fingertip access to thousands of carrier rates and data. Additionally, companies benefit from our buying power and long-standing carrier relationships.
So keep an eye out for news of additional LMS offices. We are excited to have the opportunity to further serve our existing clients and bring new clients into the mix. Additional clients mean additional freight, which increases our collective freight spend and our buying power. And, additional offices also mean more logged air miles for John, who will probably need a vacation about this time next year.
It is my professional opinion that we definitely need to open up an office in South Florida. And then another in Hawaii. Also, Denny, have you considered growing offshore? It might take a month or two for us to set it up, but an Italy office would be really nice, wouldn’t you agree?