The FreightCaviar Podcast

Hosted by FreightCaviar Media

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Episodes

275

Latest episode

Oct 2026

Language

EN-US

About the show

The FreightCaviar Podcast interviews founders, executives, and decision-makers in the freight and shipping industry. New episodes are released every Monday at 5 a.m. CT and are available on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts. Also, subscribe to our free freight broker newsletter on FreightCaviar.com.

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60 recent

November 9, 2026Episode 231 hr 6 min

How a 5-Year-Old Carrier Landed Toyota

Carlos M. Llanes Jr., Founder and CEO of Spartan Carrier Group, on how his five-year-old carrier became one of only 12 serving Toyota in North America and grew to $60M without VC funding. Plus why nuclear verdicts go beyond a $1M insurance policy and why he says the driver shortage will be fully evident by the end of 2027. Watch the full episode on our channel. This week’s episode is sponsored by Epay Manager, GoodShip, Chain and Resolve Logistics. Interested in sponsoring our podcast? Send us an email at pbj@freightcaviar.com

November 5, 2026Episode 41 hr 5 min

Meet the Freight Broker of the Future

In this conversation with Christian Salazar , President at Brotherly Freight , and Jesse Buckingham , Founder at Vooma , we look at how AI can help teams make faster decisions, share operational knowledge, and scale business. Hear how Brotherly Freight is putting Vooma’s new AI operator, Vee, to work on the brokerage floor, and what the next year could bring for the industry.

November 3, 2026Episode 201 hr 9 min

What Every Dispatcher Should Do Before 2027

Mark A. Hill, CEO of PCS Software, a Houston-based TMS for trucking carriers, shares what dispatchers should do now to prepare for 2027, and what carriers and freight brokers are up against: freight fraud, a down market that battered fleets with low rates, tariffs and war, and diesel he expects to stay above $5 through 2027. Mark also explains why trucking's fragmentation is a feature rather than a bug, his TSA PreCheck-style idea for verifying carriers, how AI has already cut dispatch work by 30%, and how a career in Houston's energy trading world during the Enron era led him to trucking.This week's episode is sponsored by Epay Manager, Highway, Bitfreighter, and Resolve Logistics.Interested in sponsoring our podcast? Send us an email at pbj@freightcaviar.com

October 27, 2026Episode 191 hr 2 min

Load Delivered’s 7th Hire Built a $25M Brokerage

Michael Cherney, Co-Founder and CEO of Cooler Logistics, shares how his team grew a food and beverage focused brokerage to a $25 million run rate in three years without posting loads on load boards, how a network built on repeat carriers has kept them free of stolen freight, and why relationships with carriers and shippers still matter more than any tech stack. Michael also breaks down his path from employee number seven at Load Delivered to first-time CEO, the tough first year that led him to rebuild his entire carrier team, how walking industry trade shows without a booth became a pipeline for new shippers, when a small brokerage is ready for enterprise freight, and why long-term carrier relationships matter more than quick fixes.' This week's episode is sponsored by Epay Manager, Goodship, Resolve Logistics and TrackFlo. Interested in sponsoring our podcast? Send us an email at pbj@freightcaviar.com

October 20, 202632 min

Carrier Profits Fell 80%. He Grew to 650 Trucks

Gabrielius Stonys, Co-Founder of Spotter Labs, shares how he turned an AI dispatching startup into a 650-truck operation while carrier profitability collapsed 80%, and why he believes scaling down is guaranteed death in trucking. Gabriel also breaks down arriving in Chicago at 12 barely speaking English, meeting his co-founder as a random teammate in Dota 2, raising a $2.5M pre-seed round in 2020, why carriers had zero appetite for automation during the COVID freight boom, and why he thinks autonomous trucks could make up 30% of the market within five to eight years. This week's episode is sponsored by Epay Manager, Bitfreighter, Goodship and Highway. Interested in sponsoring our podcast? Send us an email at pbj@freightcaviar.com

October 15, 2026Episode 1858 min

Earning the Freight

What separates preferred transportation providers from the rest? In this conversation with Kevin Mitchell, Director of Transportation at James Hardie, and Derek Zetlin, Director of Sales at GoodShip, we take an inside look at how leading shippers evaluate providers, balance relationships with performance data, and decide who earns more freight.

October 13, 2026Episode 1851 min

What It Takes to Sell a Brokerage

Peter Stefanovich, President of Left Lane Associates, shares what it takes to sell a freight brokerage, from the EBITDA most buyers need to see before they get interested to the multiples owners can realistically expect and the risks that move a valuation up or down. Peter also breaks down how Left Lane has advised on 88 transportation and logistics transactions since 2016 totaling just over $2 billion in enterprise value, how near-zero interest rates fueled the 2021 deal boom and set up the freight recession that followed, what the Montgomery ruling means for brokers and buyers, the landmark deals that shaped freight M&A from UPS buying Coyote to Echo acquiring ITS, and why he sees 2027 and 2028 as strong years to exit. This week's episode is sponsored by Epay Manager, Bitfreighter, Resolve Logistics and TrackFlo. Interested in sponsoring our podcast? Send us an email at pbj@freightcaviar.com

October 6, 2026Episode 1557 min

The $5K Bet That Built a $300M 3PL

Dan Manshaem, Co-Founder/CEO of Ally Logistics and Founder of Resolve Logistics, joined Paul-Bernard Jaroslawski and Lev Krasnopolskiy on the FreightCaviar Podcast to discuss how he started a freight brokerage in 2012 with $5K in the bank and grew it to a $300M+ run rate, what he thinks brokerage will look like in 10 to 20 years, his unconventional take on non-competes, and more.

September 29, 2026Episode 26832 min

Building a Successful Logistics Company Without Outside Investment

Chris Brewer, Founder & CEO of River City Logistics, joined Paul-Bernard Jaroslawski, Lev Krasnopolskiy, and Reed Loustalot, to discuss how he built a logistics company without outside investment, Chris’ thoughts on AI, and more.

September 22, 2026Episode 2671 hr 10 min

How TrackFlo Cut Track & Trace Staff 50%+

Thomas Mella, Co-Founder at TrackFlo, and Rich Joseph, Chief Commercial Officer and Co-Founder at TrackFlo, joined Paul-Bernard Jaroslawski and Reed Loustalot on the FreightCaviar Podcast to discuss how TrackFlo helped one brokerage cut track-and-trace headcount by more than half while improving service, what acquisitions like Descartes/Tai reveal about the value behind freight-tech M&A, and why distribution matters in an AI-driven software market. This week's episode is sponsored by Epay Manager, FreightFlex, Goodship, and Highway.Interested in sponsoring our podcast? Send us an email at pbj@freightcaviar.comCHAPTERS:0:00 Intro0:42 Meet Thomas Smella and Rich Joseph1:51 Why Freight Tech Companies Sell for $100M5:59 The $100M Freight Tech Playbook9:05 Why TrackFlo Focuses on One Problem11:56 What TrackFlo Actually Does15:28 How TrackFlo Started16:40 From TrackFlo Customer to Executive18:05 Cutting Track & Trace Staff by 50%+23:09 Bootstrapping a Freight Tech Company25:38 The Anti-SaaS Playbook27:47 Can You Vibe Code a TMS?33:53 The Future of Freight SaaS35:31 Why Expertise Still Matters in the AI Era38:18 How VC Funding Changes the Incentives40:56 The Tradeoffs of Raising Capital45:00 How Far Will AI Really Go in Freight?48:03 Could Freight Brokers Be Displaced?51:39 The LinkedIn Debate57:08 Should a SaaS CEO Build a Personal Brand?1:07:42 Final Thoughts