Unishippers of Laredo Makes the 2009 Inc. 5000 List
October 09, 2009 // Franchising.com // SALT LAKE CITY, -- Unishippers Global Logistics, LLC, the nation's largest provider of value-added shipping services, announced today that Unishippers of Laredo has been named to the 2009 Inc. 5000 list for the third consecutive year. This list represents the most comprehensive look at the most important segment of the economy - America's independentminded entrepreneurs. As an individually owned franchise, Unishippers of Laredo is distinct from the dozens of franchising companies that are included in this year's list, making this achievement even more impressive.
"Savvy trend spotters and those who invest in private companies know that the Inc. 5000 is the best place to find out about young companies that are achieving success through a wide variety of unprecedented business models, as well as older private companies that are still expanding at an impressive rate," says Inc. 5000 project manager Jim Melloan.
Unishippers combines the shipping volume of businesses served by 282 franchises across the country, and negotiates substantial discounts from its extensive national, regional and local carrier network, including UPS®, Estes® and Saia®. As a result, Unishippers franchisees are able to offer reliable shipping solutions and significant savings to small and medium sized businesses.
Since it opened for business in 1996, Unishippers of Laredo has helped hundreds of area businesses with a combination of impressive savings and local customer service. "From day one, I knew it was critical to have a great rapport with the businesses we serve," says owner Jonathan Fuller. "Our customer service is all local, and I hire only those people who demonstrate a commitment to my three qualities for success: professionalism, integrity, and proactivity."
Fuller's early growth exceeded his expectations, and allowed him to achieve his 10 year goals after just two years. In fact, the unlimited growth opportunity was one of the unique benefits that attracted Fuller to Unishippers when he was looking for franchise ownership options. "It's taken hard work, dedication, and an investment of my time, but the opportunity with Unishippers is as large as you make it, and that's not something you often find in franchising," says Fuller.
According to Dan Lockwood, President of Unishippers, having an individual franchise recognized on the Inc. 5000 is proof that Unishippers is a special franchise concept that provides exceptional growth opportunities to franchisees. "There are very few other franchise organizations that can point to an individual franchise success of this magnitude," says Lockwood. It's extremely gratifying for me to see, not only as President of Unishippers, but also as a franchise owner myself."
Complete information on this year's Inc. 5000 can be found at www.inc.com/inc5000. The list features a profile for each company and is searchable according to numerous criteria, including industry, city, state, region, and year founded. The 2009 Inc. 5000 list measures revenue growth from 2005 through 2008. To qualify, companies had to be U.S.-based and privately held, for profit, independent -- not subsidiaries or divisions of other companies -- as of December 31, 2008. Revenue in 2005 must have been at least $200,000, and revenue in 2008 must have been at least $2 million.
About Unishippers Global Logistics, LLC
Unishippers Global Logistics, LLC is a nationwide franchise organization founded in 1987. The company's concept is simple -- major carriers such as UPS®, Estes® and Saia® handle the pickup, transport and delivery of customers' shipments, while local franchisees provide customer service and support. By leveraging the combined shipping volume of all its customers, Unishippers gets deeply discounted rates from its carriers, resulting in lower shipping costs for customers. This successful business model has propelled Unishippers to become the largest provider of shipping services in the U.S., serving more than 75,000 businesses annually, moving nearly 1 million shipments per month and operating in 282 franchise areas nationwide with 2008 revenues of $326 million.
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