How Will Hopkins Founded a Successful Dispatching Business One Year into his Logistics Career

Freight Nation: A Trucking Podcast

In this episode of Freight Nation: A Trucking Podcast, host Brent Hutto is joined by Will Hopkins, Founder of BlackBox Logistics.

Join them as they explore:

• Transitioning from dispatching to a brokerage
• The challenges of starting a new business
• Why Will initially began in dispatching before moving to brokerage
• And more!

Will is Founder of BlackBox Logistics, a 3PL specializing in Intermodal and Truckload freight transportation. He is also co-host of 2 Dawgs, 1 Pod, alongside co-host Matt Dahl, a brand new podcast in the transportation and logistics space. Will also co-owns BlackBox Properties, and is Founder and Managing Partner at Compass Dispatching Services.

[10:02 - 15:07] When he was 18, Will entered the logistics industry with a position at Ascent Global. Three months into the position, he moved in with two colleagues and they kept discussing starting their own company. Within a year, they went for it, founding a third-party dispatching company, Compass Dispatching Services, so as to comply with their non-compete agreements. The dispatching business involved working with owner-operators and factoring companies, providing the three valuable industry experiences, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. As their non-compete agreements came to an end, Will focussed on the dispatching while his partners began building the brokerage, scaling back the former as the latter grew. Roughly nine months ago, they transitioned fully to the brokerage, BlackBox, which has now grown to over 40 employees.

[15:43 - 20:02] When he first started his business, Will was ignorant about essential business operations like HR, payroll, and taxes. He quickly learned that these often unappealing administrative tasks are necessary for a well-functioning business. However, having partners to share the responsibilities was a valuable asset. Each of the three co-founders had unique skills that were complementary to one another, meaning they could holistically cover all areas of the business. Of course, they had internal disagreements, but they still managed to put on a united front, avoiding deadlock in decision-making with a majority rules mentality. They had no backup plan, but they were confident in their abilities and business plan, which both proved successful.

[25:16 - 29:09 Two main variables affect the difficulty of dispatcher and broker roles. For dispatchers, drivers can be difficult to work with. For brokers, customers can have complex requirements. Will enjoyed dispatching due to the closer relationships he was able to build with drivers and the insights gained from this, which helped in the brokerage. Further, he found dispatching far more predictable, allowing for better scheduling, especially when compared to the dynamic nature of brokerage. He found it fulfilling to help owner-operators and small trucking fleets, knowing he had a direct impact on their success.

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