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SmartFreightWare (Founder & CEO)

Founded and built a SaaS transportation management system that was self-funded, received angel investment, and was successfully acquired by AFS Logistics in 2014.

The Challenge

Manufacturers, distributors, and wholesalers were overpaying for shipping across parcel, LTL, and truckload transportation. They lacked visibility into true shipping costs, couldn't easily compare carrier rates, and had no leverage to negotiate better contracts. Most were locked into suboptimal carrier agreements with no data to drive better decisions. The shipping process itself was manual, error-prone, and disconnected from tracking and invoicing systems.

The Solution

I founded Smart Freight Solutions and built SmartFreightWare—a web-based transportation management system targeting shippers. The platform featured a robust rate engine providing accurate cost estimates across all eligible carriers for any origin/destination combination. Key capabilities included multi-modal quoting and shipping (parcel, LTL, truckload), real-time tracking via carrier APIs and EDI status updates, carrier contract negotiation services that generated measurable savings, and a comprehensive admin portal for contract management, EDI/API configuration, order management, and integrations. We pioneered a unique 'gain share' pricing model where we split the transportation savings with customers—aligning our success with theirs.

The Impact

What started as SmartTMS under Revelations Technology in 2006 grew into Smart Freight Solutions after angel investment in 2010. The platform helped shippers reduce transportation costs by 10-30% through better rate visibility and contract negotiation. Our gain share model proved the value proposition—customers only paid when they saved money. The company was successfully acquired by AFS Logistics in 2014, validating both the technology and the business model. The platform's rate engine and carrier integration architecture influenced the design of AFS's subsequent technology offerings.