Crecimiento de flota 13x: La historia del transporte de Sugar Creek

“When all 41 of my drivers have freight to move, they have the income they need to feed their families. Knowing they’re covered at the end of the day is very satisfying.”

Mónica Byers
Propietario de transporte Sugar Creek

Acerca del transporte de Sugar Creek

• Aumentó flota de 3 a 41 camiones
• Corre carriles exclusivos regulares con Coyote
• Opera desde el sur de California
• Orgullosa de ser una empresa propiedad de mujeres

Monica Byers, presidenta y propietaria de Sugar Creek Transportation

Sugar Creek Transportation’s Story

When Monica Byers wrote a business plan about a woman-owned trucking company for a school project, she didn’t think she’d actually do it.

Impulsada por un espíritu emprendedor y unos años de experiencia en transporte, Mónica acabó convirtiendo el hipotético proyecto en realidad, fundando Sugar Creek Transportation a mediados de la década de 2000.

Comenzando con tres camiones, Mónica ha aumentado su flota a 41 en la actualidad.

Coyote, who started working with Monica in 2011, has helped fuel Sugar Creeks’ growth.

We talked with Monica about why she loves trucking, how to grow a fleet and what it’s like being a woman in a predominantly male industry.

Preguntas y respuestas con Mónica Byers

 

Coyote: ¿Cómo te iniciaste en el transporte?

Mónica Byers: A principios de los 90, mientras iba a la universidad, comencé a vender servicios LTL para un NVOCC (agente de carga).

 

C: ¿Qué te hizo querer iniciar tu propia empresa?

MEGABYTE: Mi padre fue dueño de varios negocios a lo largo de su vida. Él era un emprendedor y fue mi inspiración. Siempre estuve interesado en tener mi propio negocio.

He really pushed me to do it, and I did. I’ve owned a couple businesses over the years, but this one is the most exciting and meaningful to me.

Curiosamente, escribí un plan de negocios para abrir una empresa de transporte propiedad de una mujer para un proyecto de clase cuando estaba en la universidad.

Even though I didn’t start out with that career aspiration, it ended up happening. What’s that saying? Write down your goals and they’re more likely to come true.

 

C: ¿Qué te gusta de la industria del transporte por carretera?

MEGABYTE: Everything that you see, everything you touch arrives on a truck. A lot of people don’t realize that or give it much thought. I like being part of that, putting the puzzle pieces together — it’s really fun and exciting when you can make it all work.

I’ve got 41 trucks with 41 drivers that are all looking for consistent work. When I can look at each one at the end of the day knowing they’re all covered, it’s really satisfying.

When my drivers are covered, they’re making the income they need to put food on the table for their families. That’s really important to me.

 

C: ¿Cómo es ser propietaria de una empresa en una industria dominada por hombres?

MEGABYTE: Honestly, I’ve been doing it so long that I don’t really notice it—transportation is just second nature. I know it’s there, but I don’t really think about it.

Though it isn’t always obvious, occasionally I hear things that really surprise me. For instance, some drivers don’t want to work with me because I’m “just a woman.”

Over the years I’ve worked with a lot of older male drivers, and some don’t like taking direction from a woman, especially if I’m younger.

That said, I’ve had a lot of men really defend me, telling other drivers that I’ll hustle for them, get them a loaner truck, take care of them.

 

C: ¿Cómo te ha afectado la escasez de conductores?

MEGABYTE: It is THE BIGGEST challenge I have. It’s much harder to get company drivers than to hire on owner-operators. Ultimately, it comes down to respect.

En las grandes empresas, los conductores son sólo un número. Aquí en Sugar Creek, realmente tratamos de cuidar a las personas. Siempre que es posible, trato de atender a sus estilos de vida personales, no sólo al trabajo.

El boca a boca es muy importante, por eso siempre intento tratar bien a los conductores, ser justo y honesto. Ese enfoque realmente ha funcionado bien para todos nosotros.

 

C: ¿Te gusta trabajar con corredores?

MEGABYTE: Generalmente sí. He trabajado con muchos corredores y 3PL, y también tengo experiencia en hacerlo yo mismo mucho antes en mi carrera.

They can be a lot of fun to work with. They’re my customers, and I like interacting with people.

 

C: ¿Cómo era antes de trabajar con Coyote?

MEGABYTE: Coyote was one of the first 3PLs I worked with. They’ve been such a big part of my network for so long that I don’t even remember life without Coyote.

 

C: ¿Por qué te gusta trabajar con nosotros?

MEGABYTE: Right away, I realized it was a fun and energetic company. You’re focused on reducing deadhead, and you’re very responsive. You answer the phone 24/7, and as I grew, you grew. The older 3PLs I had worked with were nothing like Coyote.

Overall, I love working with Coyote. I’ve had a couple different reps, and everyone I’ve ever talked to has always been great.

My current rep that I’ve had for years, Matt, is my freight son. That’s what I call him—he calls me his freight mom. He’s even going to visit when he comes to California later this year.

 

C: ¿Cuántos camiones tenías cuando empezaste?

MEGABYTE: Empecé con tres camiones desde el principio. Me gusta hacer las cosas de a tres. Acabo de comprar tres camiones más. No contrato más de 3 camiones al mes. ¡Tres es lo mío!

 

C: ¿Cómo creciste?

MEGABYTE: A lot goes into it. Drivers can make or break you in a second. They’re the backbone of my—or any trucking business. They’re seeing my customers, they’re seeing your [Coyote’s] customers every day at the dock.

Confío en que ellos serán profesionales y representarán bien a Sugar Creek.

As I mentioned earlier, word of mouth is very important. You need to take care of your drivers, because word — both good and bad — always spreads throughout your driver base. Maintaining quality equipment is also very important to most drivers.

 

C: ¿Qué ha hecho Coyote para ayudar a hacer crecer su negocio?

MEGABYTE: I probably wouldn’t be here today without Coyote. You have really enabled me to grow. Everyone has always been kind and considerate (I can’t say that for all brokers I’ve worked with).

My rep really goes above and beyond on a regular basis to take care of me and my drivers. He looks out for my network—sometimes he’ll bring me opportunities and say, “This may not be what you want, but this will help your network.”

Matt will find me trailers when I need one, he’ll reroute loads in emergency situations. He always stands by us when issues pop up.

Juntos ha sido una buena combinación para nuestros dos negocios.

 

Monica, we couldn’t agree more. Thank you for being a part of the Pack!

 

¿Quiere ver cómo otras mujeres líderes prosperan en la industria del transporte por carretera? Lee como Marluh Izaguirre de M&I Truckers ha aprovechado nuevas oportunidades de transporte a través de Coyote.