Redwood Logistics announces plans to acquire Strive Logistics, in deal between Chicago-based 3PLs

Chicago-based 3PL Redwood Logistics recently announced it plans to acquire Strive Logistics, also a Chicago-based 3PL.

Redwood said that upon completion of this deal, it will be a technology-focused, high growth industry leader that is both a top-15 truck broker and an emerging multimodal logistics provider with over $1 billion in freight under management.

Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Redwood said that the combined company will operate under the Redwood brand, and Strive CEO Ben Greene, President Jon Provus, and the rest of management team will be part of Redwood.

Established in 1995, Strive is a provider of non-asset multimodal services and has offices in Chicago, Illinois and Austin, Texas.  Redwood officials said that meshing

Strive’s freight management and multimodal brokerage capabilities, proprietary LoadRunner Transportation Management System (TMS), and proficiency in process automation with Redwood’s scale, integrated model, enterprise sales team, and best-in-class transportation execution “creates an innovative, full-service logistics offering for the transportation marketplace.”

John Centers, EVP sales and marketing for Redwood, explained in an interview that Strive is a strong competitor that Redwood has had great respect for over the years.

“We’ve established an aggressive growth plan that factors in both organic growth and expansion through mergers and acquisitions, and the acquisition of Strive fit well from several perspectives,” he said. “We really have a high bar when evaluating potential acquisition targets. Ideally the company expands our scale, our service portfolio and the geography we serve, but just as important they must also be a good fit from a culture perspective.  This really was a perfect match for us.”

As for what made Strive stand out, Centers pointed to how the company’s multimodal brokerage operates on a best-in-class TMS, LoadRunner, which sets it apart from other 3PLs in the industry.

“Their digital freight matching model creates efficiencies and opportunities that has built Strive into a powerhouse logistics provider,” he said. “This helps to propel efficiencies across the Redwood platform. The culture similarities between Redwood and Strive also make this acquisition special. Both teams bring an entrepreneurial spirit and strong focus on continual professional and personal growth to the table.” 

When asked what the main shipper benefits of this deal are, Centers said shippers will benefit from the shared capabilities of each company.

“While our services are complementary, our customer base does not have much overlap,” he noted. “This allows us to extend our combined services to serve a wider base of shippers.  Customer from both Redwood and Strive will see more value. The LoadRunner platform will bring greater efficiencies to current Redwood customers.  The customers of Strive will enjoy a broader set of service offerings and expertise that Redwood has in place.”   

Strive’s LoadRunner, added Centers, is ahead of the digital freight matching curve, explaining it optimizes freight booking and has driven efficiencies for their brokerage for some time.

“They also have a major operations center in Austin which aligns with our expansion plans and further supports our growth into Mexico,” he said. “They help to bring a very smart team and additional resources and scale to our company. We are excited to leverage these resources to make our brokerage even stronger.”