How many loads can I do off the load board?

Go work for someone first. Do you have a cdl?

 

Step one. Make one truck profitable before getting anymore.

Step two. Read step one and don’t deviate.

 

In theory, yes it could work.

Just like flipping houses, or rental properties, or fast food franchise, or any other micro business.

Lots of people have made a lot of money doing these things. Even more have gone broke. They don't think about how much time and effort it will take to get the business off the ground AND KEEP IT GOING. In the Jimmy John's franchise sales pitch, the last line is something like "once you made all your plans- get ready to work harder than you have in your entire life".

For some perspective- in 10 years of watching guys come on here and ask similar questions or try to actually become a small fleet, I've only seen one guy be successful. There are a handfull of fleet operators, but most of them started a long time ago and slowly built their fleets from the ground up. They didn't dump $6 million into equipment in one go. The one that did go full bore flamed out (farm to fleet).

On one of our dedicated account startups it took 18 months to get fully staffed up with drivers. And that's with a fully staffed recruiting department. There is no way the account manager could have both kept the trucks moving and found drivers. Not to mention doing all the maintenance, accounting, and associated paperwork. For 25 trucks, we had two full time office staff and 10 "part time" specialists. Have you budgeted for that?

I hope you're not planning on financing any of this. If you are, good luck becaue any serious banker is going to have you at 15% apr, and if you need to factor there goes your profit margin.

As a last thought, if you want to do this get a job for a dispatch service and see what it's really like. Or contact @TB John and he'll get Inga on the job and make sure your money finds a good home.

 

The 1st averaged 40 to 50 trucks running loads mainly in the midwest. When I started there they said they had 20% direct customers however, that was a Major lie. They did short loadboard peddle runs scheming Owner ops off the top. The owner said they owned 4 trucks but had reoccurring ads on indeed daily. Now I don't see them at all assuming they downsized or buckled.The 2nd one was your typical Chicago corrupted russian company with around 50 trucks. Similar story, they own 10 of their own trucks scheming the o/o off the top, higher than normal insurance rates (keeps them profitable), b.s. lying type of job ad marketing schemes developed a bad name in trucking. The company I work for nowis like clock work. Everything is basically direct customer freight. Steady cash flow and a Majority of happy employees including the drivers and o/o.

 

OP, how long have you been in the United States?

 

All I have to say Newtrucker is, if you think you’re going to deplete the loads on the load boards with 50, 100, 500, or 1000 trucks it just belies your absolute ignorance of this industry. It’s not how many loads you run off load boards it’s what the REVENUE of each load is. Decades ago a railroad bigwig was asked how the railroad he worked for was going to stay profitable and in business when they were loosing revenue on each carload. His response was “we’ll make it up on volume”. The railroad as a matter of fact went out of business shortly thereafter. You thinking you’re going to deplete load boards is laughable. It’s all about operating ratio. Below 100 you’re making some profit above 100 you’re loosing money. You are putting the cart before the horse. You’ll find it hard to get even a HANDFUL of truck drivers that will help make you money. Your ignorance of this industry is awe inspiring.

I do believe you reside under a bridge and if you don’t get that reference, it speaks volumes

 

I’m thinking OP might be a sugar kid. Smells right. Watched a few fake online videos of that one gal that supposedly makes hundreds of millions a year, and their parner is only playing along to get some.