On May 21, 2020, right in the middle of the country’s COVID shut down, we received the news that we lost one of our biggest customer accounts, Mars Petcare. I just remember feeling completely shocked – we were hauling 40 or more shipments a week for them! It was a giant blow for our Customer Team because we had spent so much time building our entire network around the lanes we hauled for Mars. We signed up for all kinds of freight coming out of areas where we were not going to have trucks. So, like so many other companies that go through adversity, we had to adapt and overcome.
The Customer Team worked hard to sign new customers as well as increase the number of shipments with our existing customers. We not only survived but ended up coming out of the past year stronger than when we started. In addition, we made sure to stay in contact with Mars Corporate and the Mattoon plant all year long to remind them that we are still here if they needed help. About 5 months ago, they finally reached out and had us help haul some lanes that their new carriers were falling behind on. They realized that they had made a mistake contracting with carriers who were not providing the same type of service that Marvin Keller provided them. We were invited back to bid this year and we were awarded lanes out of Mattoon and Gibson City again!
This says a couple different things:
1. We have the best fleet of drivers on the road.
2. Our customer service is top notch.
We are so happy to have Mars back. The freight is very carrier friendly – most of it is drop and hook on both sides. We will be delivering to Lancaster, TX, Columbia, SC, West Jefferson, OH and a few other locations. I look forward to continuing to prove ourselves as a true asset to Mars Petcare.
