Question

If he can’t appear here himself, that’s all the more reason why you get answers as you do.

As much as you think it is easy, it is not.

You are looking at things like a driver, not as an owner which makes it even harder. He needs to take hours to learn the market and industry, he has to actually identify the niches that he can leverage and target those areas to leverage the truck into a profitable operation.

Trying to determine what is a logical answer in this industry leads to failure because a lot isn’t a lot of logical answers to be found, only answers to validate ideas. Sometimes the most illogical answer is the right one, we are all in a regulated industry but what you seem to ignore backs my point about don’t get into this business with a friends or relatives.

so not to let you down with a non-answer post, my recommendation is this.

First if he is determined to get into this, then he has to have liquid capital, a lot of people who have money thinking this is a great way to make millions and be king of the trucking thing (sarcasm), but with an 85% failure rate, capital is the main reason for failures followed up by mismanagement and then what is cropping up in the last couple years is a lack of an exit strategy.

Capital includes enough money in liquid reserve to cover six months of full operation with no income and even more important reason isn’t because of a lack of income but to cover expenses for a truck that will have downtime in weeks not days. New trucks with warranties don’t cover business expenses, used ones sometimes are more costly than having new ones.

With that is a completely separate business structure from his other ventures, and make you a partner, not an employee, have some skin in the success or failure,

Then learn how to buy a truck, it isn’t a car but it is a tool, due diligence is needed no matter if it is new or not.

Then you two should put a truck with a carrier where he can get the hand holding to learn the business because you will need it. Between the both of you, you should learn enough about how this market works and where the actual money is, it isn’t in load boards and brokers.

This is more or less the best approach to it for the next year or so, because when the economy tanks (it isn’t a question of if but when), then you both would have options to go for an authority or maybe find another niche to put a truck in - notice I didn’t say trailer?

 

Sounds like very good or great advice