In the Driver’s Seat
By Anna Guy
Wayne VanderKlei, Operations and General Manager of Gigg Express Inc. knew the company was doing well, but he and the team were still surprised when they got a call saying they made the Profit 500 list for Canada’s fastest-growing companies. For 29 years, the PROFIT 500 has been Canada’s most respectable and influential ranking of entrepreneurial achievement. Developed by PROFIT and now published in Maclean’s magazine and at CanadianBusiness.com, the PROFIT 500 ranks Canadian companies on five-year revenue growth. Gigg ranked at number 44 overall and an impressive number 2, within the transportation sector.
“Anytime you are recognized for a certain achievement is great and something to be proud of,” says VanderKlei. “The fact that is even better is that we did it unknowingly because we didn’t even realize we were on the Profit 500 radar. We did it as a result of conducting business like normal, like we do everyday. Fairly, honestly, efficiently as possible all day, everyday.”
In business since April of 2010, Gigg express Inc. started out with a single truck and has grown to a fleet size of 700. Offering both LTL and Truckload, Gigg Express is an asset-based company providing cross border truckload and LTL service with single and team drivers. They pride themselves on excellent customer service, adaptability and quality transportation.
Above and Beyond
Gigg offers solutions for all sectors of industry: automotive, retail, electronics and apparel, paper products, appliances, furniture and food. “We are entrusted to haul commodities equally and efficiently for all,” VanderKlei. “We take great pride in hauling anything and everything so we can have a positive influence on the economy and our customers’ businesses. Our recent involvement at the Truck World exhibition in Mississauga gave us some exposure and now people know who we are, what we do and where we came from.” VanderKlei is being humble; Gigg’s reputation is that it is on the way to being a leading contender in the trucking industry.
VanderKlei believes “excellent customer service, adaptability and quality transportation” have been integral to the company’s fast rise. “We are a young company equipped with fresh thinking and great energy to go above and beyond for our valued customers,” he says. “Trailer tracking, as well as a new state-of-the-art computer software program, will give us another edge on the competition making us much more efficient and precise in everything we do, from moving the freight to paying our drivers to collecting on invoices. Our moto is ‘Make one call, we do it all’.”
Navigating economic and regulatory shifts is an important step in maintaining momentum. For instance, in December, 2017, when the CCMTA (Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators) mandated electronic logging devices (ELD), the Gigg team managed by having a fluctuating and aggressive pricing policy to accommodate all industries while remaining competitive. “We didn’t know where rates were going to end. It seems now that things have leveled out in the past three or four weeks and pricing should not be an issue for anyone anymore. That’s what we are counting on because that is when our customer service, equipment, and our philosophies can really come to the forefront.”
Customer First
Every Gigg customer has a specific customer service team assigned to them just to go that extra mile. VanderKlei says, “We know what’s best for our customers when it comes to trucking and we feel they deserve the best lines of communication possible and also the best decisions being made on their behalf, always with their blessings of course.”
Culture of Safety
Safety culture at Gigg grows everyday. The moment you step foot on the property, you see signage reminding drivers and staff of what is expected. From the outset in the orientation process, drivers and staff are tested and told of the importance on all safety. “It’s a total team effort,” says VanderKlei. “We police each other. It’s a continual process that we work on everyday, all day.”
Going forward, the Gigg team will continue growing momentum. “We need to keep doing what we are doing. We want to be the biggest and the best.” Says VanderKlei. “From one truck seven years ago, to a fleet of 700 shows we are on that highway to success which we plan to continue on with attention to customer’s needs, maintaining our equipment and, of course, doing what we say we are going to do.”
