When Simranjit (“Sim”) Singh of Virk Express saw how much money he could make as a truck driver with a CDL A license, he decided to go all in. After witnessing the mismanagement of a trucking operation they were working for, Sim and his business partner, Sunny, decided to go into business for themselves.

I talked to Sunny and Sim about how they built their business getting dedicated lanes, how to earn the trust of customers, and the many challenges of running a reefer trucking operation out of California.

Questions for Sunny and Sim? Email us at hello@bobtail.com!

Episode Highlights

How Sim and Sunny got started in trucking

• Sim and Sunny started as a driver, then worked in the back office of a trucking company.
• Witnessing a lot of mismanagement of the money, equipment, safety scores, and insurance, they decided to learn from it and strike out on their own as business owners.

About Virk Express

• Virk Express has 5 company trucks, 7 reefer trailers, running lanes in Northern California to Salt Lake City to Idaho Falls and back to Northern California.
• They started on the load boards, but now 90% of their loads are dedicated lanes.
• Persistence is key! Sim constantly followed up with brokers they liked working with, learning from them and making themselves available to their favorite brokers and shippers.
• Communication, language skills, and responsiveness to their customers has been key to building their business.

Stay tuned for Part II where we’ll talk about the finances of running a reefer trucking operation.