A Cincinnati-based startup has more than 5,000 employees on its hiring docket as the company eyes expansion opportunities in markets across the U.S.
And a newfound partnership should facilitate even more growth, enabling the startup to process heightened demand from its nationwide client roster.
Frayt Technologies Inc., a shipping and technology company that connects commercial and consumer clients with on-demand delivery services, recently hired Dayton-based Woolpert Inc. to provide Google Maps Platform services and technical support for its revamped shipping and delivery app.
Lawrence McCord, co-founder and CEO of Frayt, told me the partnership will enable the startup to expand and optimize its services.
"The next level of demand that we've received is routing, and Woolpert is the expert in Google Maps and APIs," he said. "So, we partnered with them to help facilitate our growth."
Teaming up with Woolpert should accelerate even faster growth for Frayt, which has seen its business swell by 400% month-over-month since the end of March, McCord said. By the end of 2020, the company expects to eclipse $3 million in annual recurring revenue — a figure that should jump to $5 million during the first quarter of next year.
Frayt's business model works by connecting small-freight and independent van owners with excess cargo space to customers who need items shipped. Unlike traditional carriers that leverage interconnected terminals and multiple drivers, Frayt relies on a nationwide network of contractors to independently meet customers' delivery needs.
"Once it goes onto a Frayt vehicle, it's point A to point B," McCord said. "There's not multiple hands touching it."
The idea is to remove barriers of access for small business and consumer clients. Customers can log into the app, enter their information and receive an instant quote, and Frayt collects a transactional fee whenever a driver completes a delivery.
"Last year, we were doing about 100 to 200 deliveries a month. By January, we were doing 500. By May, we were doing 2,500," McCord said. "Now, we're doing 3,000; and in November, we're going to be doing 40,000 deliveries a month."
The projected uptick stems partly from a contract Frayt recently landed with the Party City retail chain (NYSE: PRTY), which operates more than 850 locations nationwide. In every region where Party City operates, Frayt plans to quickly set up shop.
"We're scalable, because we — in a sense — crowdsource our drivers," McCord said. "If our national customers are saying, 'We love you guys in New Jersey, can you open up in Pennsylvania and Georgia?' We can open up a market in two to three weeks."
McCord launched Frayt in 2018 after more than 30 years' experience in the transportation industry. After dropping out of college in the early 1990s, he launched his own delivery service; and in 1999, he invested $20 to launch On Time Media, which has grown into a multimillion-dollar media company focused on the expedited trucking market.
Frayt competes with larger players in the logistics sector by offering both same-day and same-hour delivery, which is a particularly attractive feature for businesses, McCord said.
The company is backed by $2.5 million in venture capital from New York-based Covenant Advisors and maintains a network of more than 3,000 small-fleet and independent drivers.
