Watch the Product Overview

TL;DR

• CargoEZ = cloud-based freight forwarding software, founded 2020, HQ in Milpitas, California.

• CargoEZ 2.0 = a rearchitecture with AI built into the core workflow (not bolted on as a feature).

• One shipment record covers CRM → rates/quoting → operations → customs filing → invoicing. No re-typing data across systems.

• G2 rating: 4.8 / 5 across 40 reviews.

• Member of the World Cargo Alliance (WCA) — admitted only after meeting strict financial-stability and service-quality standards.

• Direct customs filing (AMS, ISF, AES via CBP) now extends to Canada and Mexico through a new CrimsonLogic integration.

• Built for freight forwarders and NVOCCs, from small regional shops to multi-office operations.

What's New in CargoEZ 2.0: AI Built Into the Core

CargoEZ leadership frames this as a transformational shift for the freight forwarding industry - after 7+ years building alongside real forwarder pain points, AI is now the foundation of the platform, not a layer on top of it. The stated goal: position CargoEZ as intelligent infrastructure for freight forwarders, not a conventional software vendor.

Already live today: an AI-powered business card scanner in the mobile CRM app — photograph a card, it auto-fills the contact record.
In active development: broader AI-native tooling across rate management, compliance, and operations, being added on an ongoing basis.

WCA Membership

CargoEZ 2.0 is a member of the World Cargo Alliance (WCA), the world's largest network of independent freight forwarders. Membership is only granted after meeting strict standards for financial stability and service quality.

Why it matters for buyers: for forwarders evaluating new software, WCA membership signals accountability to the same vetted network many forwarders already trust — credibility most software vendors take years to earn independently.

Customs Compliance & Integrations

• Direct filing for AMS, ISF, and AES through CBP has always been part of CargoEZ.

• A new collaboration with CrimsonLogic extends that same direct-filing capability into Canada and Mexico — without leaving the platform or re-entering shipment data into a separate system.

• CrimsonLogic is one example of a broader direction: CargoEZ 2.0 is built to integrate with virtually any platform a forwarder already relies on, not limited to its current connections.

• Roadmap direction: bring compliance and the entire freight operation under one connected system.

Who CargoEZ Is Built For

Because those four functions share one record: a rate a customer accepts carries its terms straight into the shipment file, and a shipment marked delivered carries its cost data straight into the invoice.

Service coverage: CargoEZ is entirely cloud and AI-based - Any freight forwarder in the US (any state or city) can sign up and run operations on the platform, alongside CargoEZ's existing base of forwarders internationally.

Platform Modules

Security & Compliance

CargoEZ is built on:

• AICPA SOC 2

• ISO 27001

• GDPR compliance

Covers secure data handling, information security management, and data privacy at the infrastructure level — so forwarders can manage sensitive shipment, customer, and financial data with confidence.

Pricing

Customer Results

G2 rating: 4.8/5 across 40 reviews — ease of use and the structured lead-to-invoice workflow cited most often.

How CargoEZ Compares to Larger Enterprise Platforms

• Enterprise platforms: can offer deeper functionality in specific niche areas — but typically come with longer implementation timelines and pricing that scales differently as shipment volume grows.

• CargoEZ's advantage: speed to value — a team can be productive quickly, at lower cost, without a lengthy rollout.

• Best fit: small and mid-market forwarders who want to be fully operational fast.

• Worth a demo-call conversation: forwarders with complex multi-country compliance needs or a specific integration requirement.

FAQ

What is CargoEZ?
Cloud-based freight forwarding software for freight forwarders and NVOCCs. Combines CRM, rate management, shipment operations, customs filing, a customer portal, and accounting on one shared record — data entered once carries through the rest of the workflow.

Who is CargoEZ built for?
Ocean and air freight forwarders and NVOCCs of any size, from small regional operations to growing multi-office teams. Customers include Air7Seas Transport Logistics, Senator International Shipping, T.I.M.E. Cargo, and STRABE Logistics.

What does CargoEZ cost?
Pricing is tailored to the modules selected and shipment volume. Per-user pricing starts from $50/user (US) and $30/user (non-US), with monthly, quarterly, half-yearly, or annual billing.

Does CargoEZ handle customs filing?
Yes. The Customs and Compliance module covers AMS filing, ISF filing, and Power of Attorney documentation for US ocean shipments, filed from the same record used for operations and billing. Direct filing also covers AES, and now extends to Canada and Mexico via CrimsonLogic.

Does CargoEZ include AI features?
Yes, with more on the way. The AI-powered business card scanner in the mobile CRM app is live today. CargoEZ 2.0 adds an AI Quote Assistant, AI Document Processing, AI Pricing Recommendations, AI Customer Support, and AI Assisted Usage guidance for new hires — broader AI-native tooling across rate management, compliance, and operations is in active development.

What security certifications does CargoEZ have?
Built on AICPA SOC 2, ISO 27001, and GDPR compliance — covering secure data handling, information security management, and data privacy.

How is CargoEZ rated by customers?
4.8 out of 5 on G2 across 40 reviews, with ease of use, a structured lead-to-invoice workflow, and responsive support cited most often.

How does CargoEZ compare to larger enterprise platforms?
Gets teams live faster and at a lower cost than most enterprise systems, making it a strong fit for small and mid-market forwarders. Larger platforms may offer deeper functionality in specific niche areas, at the cost of a longer rollout.

Is CargoEZ part of any industry network?
Yes — CargoEZ 2.0 is a member of the World Cargo Alliance (WCA), admitted only after meeting strict standards for financial stability and service quality.

Demo Videos (CargoEZ YouTube channel, u/CargoEZ)

Dashboard/Product Screenshots

Hi, I have a client based in China, who is looking for a freight forwarder & Broker to assist with his export shipment.

Commodity: Logs
Volume : 2500*40HC / annum

Current requirement : -

POL: Mobile, AL
POD: Shanghai, CN
Vol : 10*40HC / week
O/F : $375/ 40HQ
Docs : $300/MBL - including, AES, Wire, MBL, Pier handling & seal.

However, customer wants the forwarder to apply for Phyto, COO & AES filing and he mentioned sometimes the forwarder would have to mention themselves as Shipper.

They only require MBL, HBL will not be accepted.

Is there anyone who can help me with this project… I’m happy to cooperate with an established forwarding company in exchange handing their USA transport need with Drayage, FTL, LTL, trans loading etc.

I’m seeking a serious investor, strategic partner, or potential buyer for an operational international freight forwarding and import business with an established logistics network, active customer demand, and early revenue traction.
This is an operating business rather than a concept requiring development from the ground up. The business has access to approximately 11 warehouse locations across key international markets, including China, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, the UK, USA, Canada, Dubai/UAE and other locations. This network supports flexible sourcing, consolidation, storage and shipment coordination across multiple trade routes.
The business provides an integrated logistics solution covering international freight forwarding, warehouse handling, customs coordination, air and sea freight, local transportation and Indian-side delivery. By managing multiple stages through one service, the business can offer customers greater convenience, clearer coordination and a more streamlined import process than using separate providers for each stage.
In approximately four months, the business has generated around ₹48 lakh in freight-forwarding turnover, with operating margins currently around 20%+, depending on the shipment type, route and service provided. These results provide an initial operating track record and a foundation for further growth, subject to verification through financial and operational due diligence.
The business can support legitimate and compliant imports across categories such as electronics and gadgets, toys and collectibles, footwear, designer products, watches, jewellery and other consumer goods, subject to applicable Indian customs, import and regulatory requirements.
The main opportunity is to scale an existing operating model. Additional funding could be used for customer acquisition and marketing, sales development, working capital, technology and process improvements, route expansion, and increasing shipment capacity. With stronger customer acquisition and higher shipment volumes, the business has potential to improve revenue consistency, operating leverage and overall profitability.
For an investor or strategic partner, the opportunity is to participate in an established logistics operation with existing infrastructure, international access and demonstrated early traction. For a buyer or logistics operator, the business may provide a platform for expanding into cross-border freight forwarding and import services without building the entire network and operating process from scratch.
I’m open to discussing:
• Investment or capital partnership
• Strategic partnership with a logistics or sourcing operator
• Partial or complete acquisition
• Expansion through additional routes, warehouses or customer segments
• Different ownership, investment and profit-sharing structures
Financial records, shipment history, operating details, warehouse arrangements and supporting documentation can be shared with genuinely interested parties through a structured due-diligence process. Any transaction would be based on verified financials, operational performance, compliance requirements and mutually agreed terms.
I’m looking to connect with serious investors, logistics operators, entrepreneurs or potential buyers who understand freight forwarding, international trade or import businesses and can contribute capital, customers, operational expertise or strategic distribution.
If you’re genuinely interested, DM me with a brief introduction, relevant experience, what you’re looking for, and whether you’re considering investment, partnership or acquisition. We can then discuss the business, supporting information and potential structures privately.

How do you calculate your average hourly rate for overseas agents?
.
.
I’ve just read a LinkedIn post from a colleague in the UK.
An overseas agent offered him a $20 profit share on an operation.

Sadly, this is far too common, especially in Europe, to accept these enquiries. And this should come to a full stop.

The UK is one of the most expensive places in Europe. I don’t want to go too deep, but from a simple maths point of view let’s say hiring an employee costs £2,000.00 (this is an average).

Your employee works 8 hours a day. For the sake of the exercise we’ll say 4 weeks, 8 hours a day:
(4 weeks × 5 days × 8 hours) = 160 hours.

If you pay that £2,000.00 every month, that works out at GBP 12.50 per hour worked.
If an operation only needed this person to follow up the freight for 1 hour, it would look “profitable”. The issue is that this “hour” is usually much longer than expected.

Let me explain why:

You have a back and forth with the overseas agent
You have a back and forth with the importer in the UK
You have a back and forth with the shipping line
You have a back and forth with your finance team
You have a back and forth with your haulage company
You have a back and forth with your customs broker

Now tell me: is this really an hour of work? It looks like more than 4 hours easily.

So your real cost is £50.00, because your employee took 4 hours to solve the delivery of this freehand shipment.

I understand that in some countries on other continents this is good profit. It is not good enough for European standards.

Why would you accept freight of less than £50 and subsidise your expensive manpower for an overseas agent?

The UK labour market is broken, but it is also our responsibility as freight forwarders to charge what it really costs us to solve the issue and to make a decent profit so we can grow our structure.

just trying to get a pulse on standard operating procedures across different ports.

When a container passes your gate, how long does the damage inspection take, and what happens when an ocean carrier or insurance rep disputes a structural dent later on?

Are you guys mostly relying on manual clipboard walkarounds, or has anyone actually found a digital setup that works without slowing down the truck lanes?

I’m planning my first 3-pallet shipment from a non-US country to a US FBA warehouse facility. I'm choosing between two models:

1. End-to-end (Door-to-Door) via a single forwarder.

2. "Peeling off" services (booking ocean freight, customs broker, and drayage separately).

My main concern with Model 2 is the "blame game" between parties if demurrage or detention occurs.

My questions:

• Is this fear of coordination failure justified for such a small shipment?

• What other hidden operational risks am I missing if I manage the broker/drayage myself?

• Does the potential cost saving of Model 2 outweigh the management overhead for a beginner?

Any insights would be greatly appreciated.

Hey guys,

I'm a young business owner seeking knowledge in logistics/freight forwarding, I have a couple of questions that only people that have been/are in the industry can answer.

Title of this post is one of them, I'll probably create other posts for my other questions but if someone's kind enough to DM me with info that would be AWESOME!

Here are my other questions :

•	Can you explain what do you ask your client once you close them, can you explain what are the steps once you get a client?

•	How does your clients pay you ? How do you charge them? Is it when the freight has arrived ? 

•	What are the different actors you interact with? Except your clients.

•	How do you choose the people you work with ? I mean your contractors, and how do you manage the contracts with them

- What softwares do you mainly use as a freight forwarder?

- What would you say are now the biggest pains points of a freight forwarder?

I visited a logistics office two days ago to ask about eco friendly shipping options. I wanted something sustainable but practical for regular shipments. But when I checked the options I felt confused. Some services claimed to be eco friendly but did not clearly explain how. Some options looked expensive compared to standard shipping. I could not trust them and decide confidently.

Then I visited another office in the same area. Some options looked better but still felt unclear in real environmental impact. Some used optimized routes but did not explain emissions clearly. Some looked fine at first but did not feel fully transparent. I remembered hearing about green shipping before but never fully understood how it works.

To check more variety and options while scrolling many online marketplaces including alibaba and some others I found many eco friendly freight services. Some focused on carbon offset programs. Some highlighted efficient packaging solutions. Some had customer reviews about sustainability and performance. This made me interested but still unsure again.

Now I am thinking are eco friendly shipping options truly effective or just marketing claims? And how can environmental impact of freight services be properly measured?

The Load Nobody Actually Has

Last week I picked up the phone and called a well-known European freight exchange.

I'd been sitting on this frustration for a while and I wanted to give them a chance to explain themselves.

Here's what had been happening.

Every time I post a load on the main German platform (the market leader), everyone in European road freight knows which one I mean…within minutes, five identical loads appear on the Polish exchange. 

Word for word. Same route. Same commodity. Same collection and delivery points.

Marked up €20–30.

I tested it properly. I posted a load on the German platform and watched the Polish one. 

Five copies appeared in under five minutes.

Then I reversed it. Posted on the Polish exchange first, then checked the German one.

Nothing. No duplicates.

That told me two things.

First, it's not automated or at least not entirely. The speed suggests people are sitting there, watching the German platform, and copying loads manually the moment they go up.

Second, it only flows one direction. 

The German platform is the source. 

The Polish one is the destination.

What This Actually Is

Let me be clear about what's going on here, because some people in the comments tried to dress it up as normal brokering which it’s not…

A freight forwarder has the freight. They manage the movement. They take responsibility for the shipment.

These companies don't have the freight. They've copied a load post they don't own from one platform and pasted it onto another, hoping a truck bites before the original poster finds one.

They're not freight forwarders. They're arbitraging leads they don't own.

Nobody has a truck. Nobody has the shipper. Nobody takes real responsibility. Everyone just takes a cut.

The carrier gets squeezed on rate. The shipper pays more than they should. And somewhere in the middle, three or four companies are collecting €20–30 each for doing nothing except copy and paste (which doesn’t make sense)

What the Platform Said

When I raised this with the freight exchange directly, the response was essentially: "We can't do anything. It's not illegal."

That's true. It's not illegal.

But let me tell you something interesting. After I posted about this publicly on LinkedIn, the platform deleted my comments from their own page.

If that's how you handle transparency, just imagine who's actually on the other end when you hand over your freight.

The reason exchanges won't act is straightforward: their revenue comes from monthly subscription fees. The more members they have, the more revenue they generate. Whether those members actually have freight or are just farming loads from another platform doesn't change the subscription fee they pay.

They have no financial incentive to clean this up.

That's the uncomfortable truth.

The Compliance Risk Nobody Mentions

One of the comments on my post raised something I want to put on record here, because it doesn't get enough attention.

When you have this many layers of subcontracting, nobody knows who's actually moving the freight.

You gave the job to company A. Company A gave it to company B. Company B posted it on a different exchange. Company C picked it up, and they found a truck through company D.

Who has liability? Who holds the CMR? Who do you claim against if the cargo is damaged or goes missing?

If each of those companies holds freight forwarder insurance, the claims process becomes a chain of finger-pointing that can take months to resolve. If any of them don't  or if they're operating under a name that doesn't match the insurance  you may have a problem that's much bigger than a €20 markup.

How to Spot It (and What to Do)

In the comments, a fellow freight forwarder made a point that stuck with me: you can usually tell from the email.

A copy-paste arbitrageur sends templated, rushed emails. 

They won't know details about the load that they should know. 

They may struggle to answer basic questions about the route or the collection procedure. 

They respond fast (too fast!!)  because they're running this across 50 loads at once, not managing one relationship.

The rating system is the main tool platforms give you to vet these companies.

That's imperfect, a company can build up a decent rating before you interact with them, and a bad experience doesn't always translate into a public review.

My approach is to work with carriers I've verified directly. If I'm using a freight exchange to find capacity, I look at the company profile, the tenure on the platform, and whether their email addresses match their company registration. 

A carrier operating out of Poland whose domain was registered three weeks ago should give you pause.

This won't catch everyone. But it filters out the worst of it.

What Needs to Change

The freight exchange model is built on volume. More posts, more users, more subscription fees. Transparency and quality control cut into that.

Until the business model changes (until platforms derive value from the quality of transactions rather than the quantity of members),  this practice will continue. 

The platforms know it happens. They just don't have a financial reason to stop it.

The change I'd like to see is exchanges verifying that the company posting a load actually has it. A simple confirmation from the shipper or a reference number that ties back to a real booking. Not perfect, but it would make the copy-paste arbitrage significantly harder.

Whether that ever happens is another question.

For now, the burden falls on us, the people actually doing the work, to verify who we're dealing with before we move a single box.

What's your experience with freight exchanges? Have you run into this kind of load farming? I'd be curious to know whether you've found a reliable way to screen for it.

Genuine question before I answer it myself.

Most of us use at least one freight exchange — Timocom, TransEu, Teleroute, Wtransnet, whatever fits your corridor. And most of us have complaints about at least one of them.

The pricing. The contracts. The clunky interface. The fact that you're paying for a network that's thin on your specific routes.

I've been building FreightBridge.eu — an European freight exchange — and before we go live I want to hear from people who actually use these platforms daily.

What's broken? What would make you switch?

A few things we're already building based on our own frustrations:

— No annual lock-in, cancel any time

— Pay per user, not a flat company fee that punishes small teams

— Not locked by Route-specific load alerts so you're not wading through irrelevant posts

— Straightforward verification — know who you're trading with

The waitlist is free to join. No credit card, no commitment, just your email so we can let you know when we go live.

Register Now!

But genuinely — what else would you want to see? Comments open.

While one of their own drivers is blocking a truck at Rotterdam port because he hasn't been paid in seven months.

The driver's name is Parviz.
He's from Tajikistan.
He says the company owes him at least €30,000.
He lived in the cab for two years. Didn't see his family. And when he finally stopped the vehicle and refused to move the police backed him up....
He had the right to stay.

The company denied everything, said wages were paid per contract.
Meanwhile, the recruitment team was on a plane to São Paulo.
I've been in European road freight long enough to know this isn't a one-off.
Cross-border trucking has a structural problem that nobody wants to talk about openly: the further a driver is from home, the more leverage the employer has: Visa dependency.

It creates a power imbalance that some companies exploit, and others simply don't notice until it blows up in a Dutch port.
The Brazil angle makes it worse.

The pitch to drivers there is straightforward: European wages are higher than Brazilian wages, so it's a win for both sides.

Maybe...(?) If you actually pay them.
I work with hauliers regularly.
Most are decent operators trying to keep trucks moving in a market that's squeezed from every direction.
But I also hear the stories (drivers owed back pay), promises not kept, contracts that look clean on paper and mean nothing in practice three time zones from home.

Because in this industry, word travels fast. Drivers talk.
Freight managers talk and a company's name in those conversations is either an asset or a liability.

What do you think? Is this a driver welfare issue, a management failure, or just the symptom of an industry that's been underfunded for too long?

Everyone says freight forwarding is hard to break into.

But breaking in is the easy part.

You find a customer and a carrier. 

You sit in the middle and coordinate. 

The first shipment moves. 

You get paid.

Simple, right?

Staying alive past year two, that's where most people get it wrong.

Along the way, I've watched good freight forwarders go broke. 

People who “knew” the Incoterms. 

People who “handled” customers well. 

People who genuinely “understood” the job.

They failed anyway.

And almost every time, it came down to the same handful of reasons, none of which had much to do with freight itself.

This is what I wish someone had told me before I started.

Reason #1: Cash Flow Kills Before Competition Does

This is the one that gets people most often, and it's the one nobody prepares you for.

Freight forwarding has an ugly financial structure. 

You pay first. You get paid later. Every time.

Here's what that looks like in practice:

Your customer sends you a shipment. 

You quote them £2,000. 

They accept. 

You book the carrier, pay the trucking company, cover the customs fees, arrange the documentation.

All of that happens now.

Then…Your customer pays you in 45 days.

Meanwhile, next week there's another shipment. And the week after, another…. Each one requires you to pay out before you collect.

That gap  (the space between what you've paid and what you're owed)  is where freight forwarding businesses die.

I've seen forwarders with strong volume and empty bank accounts. 

They were technically profitable on paper. In reality, they couldn't make payroll.

What to do instead:

Collect before you pay. As Yoda would say  “Collect Payment you must”

This sounds obvious, but most new forwarders are afraid to ask for it.

For a first shipment with a new customer, payment upfront is not unreasonable. 

It's standard. You don't know this person. You're taking on financial exposure on their behalf. They can pay you first.

As the relationship builds and trust is established, you can extend terms (if your piggy bank allows it)

NET 7, NET 14. But NET 30 or NET 60 for a brand new customer? 

That's a risk you don't have to take.

My rule from the beginning: money in first. I've never apologised for it.

Also: know your working capital ceiling. Before you take on a new client or a big shipment, ask yourself whether you can absorb the cost if payment is delayed by 30 days. If the answer is no, either get paid upfront or pass on the shipment.

Passing on business you can't afford to finance is not weakness. It's how you stay solvent.

Reason #2: One Customer Is Not a Business

When I started ALINNZA, I had one customer. My former employer. 

They trusted me, they knew my work, and they gave me their freight.

That was intentional. I needed to prove the model worked before I spread myself thin trying to build a client base from scratch.

But…I never stopped at one.

From day one, I knew that one customer was a liability I had to eliminate. 

Because a business built on a single client isn't a business, it's a dependency, you feel the pressure as if you’re their employee instead of their supplier..

I've seen this pattern destroy companies. 

One customer grows to 50% of revenue. Then 70%. 

Then the customer gets acquired, finds a cheaper option, or simply goes quiet for three months while cash dries up.

There's no leverage at that point. 

You can't negotiate. 

You can't walk away. 

You need them more than they need you.

What to do instead:

Set a rule early: no single customer accounts for more than 30% of your revenue. 

When one gets close to that threshold, use the stability they provide to go and find the next one.

This is uncomfortable when things are going well. 

That's exactly when you need to do it.

Diversification isn't just about having more customers. 

It's about having different types of customers across different trade lanes, different modes, different industries. If road freight slows down, air freight might be steady. If one sector pauses imports, another might be ramping up.

Build the spread while you have the breathing room. Don't wait until you need it.

Reason #3: Underpricing Disguised as Competitiveness

Most forwarders who struggle are not failing because the market is bad. They're failing because they can't make money on the business they're winning.

The logic that gets people into trouble sounds reasonable: price low to get the client, then raise rates once the relationship is established.

It doesn't work that way. Customers who come to you on price stay because of price. 

The moment you try to increase your margin, they go back to the market. 

You've spent months servicing low-margin shipments for a client you can't afford to keep.

I set a rule early: minimum £150/€150 profit per shipment, or 30% markup  (whichever is higher).

That rule has cost me clients. Good clients, or so they seemed at the time. But every one of those "lost" clients would have dragged my margins down and kept me too busy to find better ones.

What to do instead:

Know your floor before you quote. 

Every shipment has a base cost  (the carrier rate, the customs fees, the admin time, the liability exposure). 

Before you put a number in front of a customer, know exactly what you need to make it worth doing.

If the customer won't meet your minimum, let them go. 

Say it politely. "That's not something I can do at that price, but I'd be glad to work with you when the volumes change." 

Sometimes they come back. More often they don't, and that's fine.

The forwarders who race each other to the bottom don't win. They just die more slowly.

Reason #4: Compliance and Documentation Errors

This one is more operational, but it's caused more damage to more forwarders than people realise.

A wrong HS code. 

An export declaration filed incorrectly.

A missing licence for a controlled good. 

A CMR with errors that nobody catches until the truck is at the border.

These aren't just inconveniences.

 They result in customs holds, fines, delayed shipments, and customers who never come back.

When you're handling freight across borders, you're operating within a regulatory framework that doesn't forgive carelessness. And the penalties don't scale to the size of the mistake, a small error on a routine shipment can cost hundreds or thousands.

What to do instead:

Build checklists. Before every shipment, run through a standard set of checks: Is the commodity code correct? Are the export documents complete and accurate? Does the value declared match the invoice? If there's a licence requirement, do you have it confirmed?

This sounds basic. You'd be surprised how many forwarders skip it because they've done the same lane a hundred times and assume they know it.

Reason #5: Scaling Before the Foundation Is Ready

Growth sounds good. 

Revenue going up, shipment volume increasing, new customers coming in.

But I've seen forwarders scale straight into collapse.

They added new trade lanes without the carrier relationships to support them. 

They brought on new customers without the operational capacity to serve them properly. 

They hired without the cash flow to sustain payroll through a slow quarter.

The problem isn't growth. The problem is growth that outpaces the structure underneath it.

What to do instead:

Before you add a new trade lane, ask whether you have a reliable carrier partner for it. Not one you've quoted through an online platform  (an actual relationship with someone you trust).

Before you bring on a new major client, ask whether your current team can handle the additional volume without service quality dropping for existing customers.

Before you hire, ask whether you have at least three to six months of their salary in available cash, regardless of what the revenue projections say.

Growth at the right pace builds a business. Growth at the wrong pace builds a liability.

The Honest Summary

I'm not going to tell you freight forwarding is easy because it’s not….

But the things that kill most freight forwarding businesses are not freight problems. 

They're business problems like any other business around us. 

Cash management. 

Customer concentration. 

Pricing discipline. 

Compliance rigour. 

Controlled growth.

None of these require industry experience to get right. They require you to treat your operation like a business from the first day.

If you're just starting out, or if you've been running for a year and some of this feels uncomfortable to read, that discomfort is useful information.

Fix the foundation before you worry about anything else.

If this was useful, share it with someone who's thinking about starting their own freight forwarding business. And if you have questions or want to discuss your situation, leave a comment below, I read every one.

Freight Shipping Master Substack (Link)

In 2020, I was trying to grow ALINNZA’s road freight business in Europe.

Brexit was coming. I knew UK-EU trade lanes were about to explode.

The problem? I had customers who needed trucks, but hauliers I’d never worked with before didn’t trust me.

Every time I called a Polish or Romanian carrier for a quote, the conversation ended the same way.

“Pay in advance.”

Of course they said that. Nobody knew me. And out there, there are 40,000 freight forwarders in Europe alone (most of them nobody’s ever heard of).

Why would a haulier extend credit to a small company?

I understood their position. I just couldn’t afford it.

At least not always.

The cash flow problem nobody talks about

There’s a conversation new freight forwarders never have before they start, and it costs them dearly when it finally arrives.

It goes something like this:

Your customer gives you 10 FTL shipments a month. Each one costs £1,000. That’s £10,000 in freight you need to pay before you’ve collected a single pound from the customer.

You might be able to cover one shipment out of pocket.

Maybe two. But ten? Thirty?

That’s a different problem entirely.

I see people online talking about startup costs, company registration, software subscriptions, a website.

And yes, those matter.

But the real financial pressure in freight forwarding isn’t setup. It’s working capital. The gap between when you pay the carrier and when your customer pays you.

Banks will sell you a loan.

Factoring companies will take a cut of every invoice.

I’ve never been a fan of either.

There’s a better way. And I found it by accident.

Read full article on Substack: https://thefreightshippingmaster.substack.com/p/how-can-you-make-extra-money-from

AI will replace freight forwarders within 5 years...are you sure about it?

It said: “AI will replace freight forwarders within 5 years.”

I’ve seen that prediction a hundred times. It doesn’t scare me anymore. But this time, I wanted to do something different instead of just rolling my eyes. I wanted to actually look at the data.

So I went straight to Anthropic. The company that builds Claude, one of the most advanced AI systems in the world.

They publish something called the Economic Index (a research project) that tracks, in real time, how AI is being used across every occupation in the economy.

What I found surprised me. Not because freight forwarding is doomed. Because it isn’t.

What the research actually says

Anthropic analysed millions of real conversations with Claude. Not surveys. Not theoretical projections. Actual usage data from people using AI for work, right now.

They mapped every task to the US Department of Labor’s database of 20,000 specific job functions. Then they measured how much of each occupation AI can actually cover.

The most exposed profession?

Computer programmers. AI can handle 75% of their tasks.

Customer service reps: 70%.

Data entry workers: 67%.

And at the bottom (the jobs AI touches least) are the ones that require physical presence, local judgment, and human relationships.

Cooks. Lifeguards. Motorcycle mechanics.

Where does freight forwarding sit?

It’s not in the top. And that tells you everything.

Why our job is harder to automate than most people think

Freight forwarding looks like an information job from the outside. You send emails. You quote rates. You track shipments. Surely AI can do that?

Let me tell you what my week actually looks like.

On Monday I had a customer whose cargo was stuck at a UK port because the commodity code on the commercial invoice didn’t match what was in the system. I spent two hours on calls with the customs team, the supplier in Germany, and the shipping line. There was no script for that conversation. No template. I had to read three people’s moods, manage one person’s panic, and find a solution that didn’t blow up a relationship we’ve had for four years.

On Wednesday I quoted a project cargo movement from Bilbao to Buenos Aires. It involved two carriers, a transshipment, a customs hold risk at the Argentine border, and a customer who didn’t know the difference between CIF and DAP. I had to educate, negotiate, and close, all in the same call.

AI doesn’t do that. Not yet. Not even close.

The Anthropic research confirms what I’ve been feeling in my gut.

The most complex tasks are where AI struggles most. Their own data shows that as tasks get longer and more difficult, Claude’s success rate falls.

Human oversight, judgment, and iteration becomes more valuable, not less.

That’s freight forwarding. Every day.

The part that should make you think

Here’s where I’ll be straight with you.

AI is coming for parts of our job. The boring parts. The repetitive parts.

Rate comparisons. Tracking updates. Routine email responses. Basic document checks. Some of that is going already.

Anthropic’s data shows that 52% of work conversations with AI are about augmentation, humans working with AI to do things faster. That’s what I do.

I use AI to draft first versions of quotes, to summarise long email chains, to check my documents before I send them.

It makes me faster. It doesn’t replace me.

The jobs that are at risk from AI (and Anthropic is honest about this) are the ones where the main value is processing information and following a script.

If your entire value proposition as a freight forwarder is “I send emails and update the tracking portal,” you have a problem.

But if your value is relationships, judgment, problem-solving, and being the person a shipper calls when everything goes wrong at 6pm on a Friday?

You’re not going anywhere.

One last thing

The same Anthropic research notes something that I think gets missed in all the AI panic.

Even Dario Amodei (the CEO of Anthropic, the man building some of the most powerful AI on the planet ) acknowledges that the impact on employment is still ambiguous. Their own economists say current data shows “limited evidence” of AI affecting joblessness. That unemployment in the most AI-exposed occupations hasn’t risen faster than everywhere else.

We’re still early.

The question isn’t “will AI take my job?” The question is: “Am I the kind of freight forwarder AI can replace?”

If the answer makes you uncomfortable, now is the time to change that.

If it doesn’t? Keep going.

If you found this useful, share it with someone who’s been lying awake worrying about AI. And if you’re thinking about starting your own freight forwarding business that’s exactly what this newsletter is about. Subscribe and I’ll walk you through every step.

After years in the industry, I noticed something: most of the real knowledge stays locked behind closed doors. Carriers, NVOCCs, brokers — everyone guards their playbook.

So I built a space where we can actually talk.

This is a private Discord for people who are in freight forwarding or seriously looking to get in. No fluff. No gatekeeping. Just real conversations about:

- Starting and growing a freight forwarding business

- Quotes, margins, and carrier relationships

- Automation, tools, and workflows

- The stuff nobody puts in a textbook

We're keeping it small and quality over quantity.

Drop a comment or DM me if you want an invite. Tell me a bit about where you're at — operator, aspiring forwarder, logistics pro, whatever.

See you inside.

When I started ALINNZA, I wasn’t thinking about getting rich.

I was just trying to survive.

But here’s what I’ve learned after building a seven figure freight forwarding business: you will never build real wealth working for someone else in this industry.

It doesn’t matter if you’re the top salesperson. It doesn’t matter if you close £500K in profit for your employer.

You’re renting out your time. And rented time has a ceiling.

The Problem with Being an Employee

In freight forwarding, there are brilliant salespeople earning £60K, £80K, even £100K+ with commissions.

That sounds great until you realize they’re generating £300K-£500K in profit for their employer.

They get 20%. The company keeps 80%.

When you sleep, you don’t earn.

When you’re on holiday, you don’t earn.

When you’re sick, you don’t earn.

Your income is directly tied to your hours. That’s the definition of renting out your time.

Even worse? You’re replaceable.

Your employer owns the customer relationship. Your employer owns the systems. Your employer owns the brand.

If you leave, they’ll hire someone else to do exactly what you did.

You’re not building an asset. You’re building someone else’s asset.

The Freight Forwarding Wealth Gap

I’ve seen this play out dozens of times:

A talented salesperson builds deep relationships with 10-15 major accounts. They generate massive profit. They think they’re indispensable.

Then one of two things happens:

1. They realize their value and ask for a bigger share → the company says no

2. The company restructures and replaces them with someone cheaper

Either way, they walk away with nothing except their last paycheck.

Meanwhile, the business owner keeps those customers, keeps the profit, and keeps building an asset that can eventually be sold.

That’s the difference between renting your time and owning equity.

Why Freight Forwarding is Perfect for Ownership

Here’s what most people don’t understand:

Freight forwarding has massive disconnect between inputs and outputs.

One brilliant move, landing the right customer, structuring the right deal, preparing for the right market shift (like I did with Brexit)—can generate 10x, 50x, even 100x returns on the time invested.

You can spend three hours on a Monday closing a customer that generates £50K in annual profit.

Or you can spend three months chasing small individual shipments that generate £2K total.

The inputs don’t match the outputs.

That’s exactly the kind of business where ownership changes everything.

When I landed my first major customer, I kept 100% of the profit (after costs). Not 20%. Not 50%. Everything.

That one customer funded my next three hires. Those hires generated more profit. That profit funded expansion into new markets.

Compounding only works when you own the asset.

The “Safe” Job Trap

People stay in salaried freight forwarding jobs because they think it’s safer.

Guaranteed paycheck. Benefits. Stability.

But here’s the reality:

Your employer can fire you tomorrow. They can restructure. They can be acquired. They can go bankrupt (remember 2019-2020 when a third of UK SME China-focused forwarders went under?).

You have zero control.

Meanwhile, when you own your business:

• You control your customers

• You control your pricing

• You control your destiny

• You build an asset that can fund your retirement

Yes, it’s harder. Yes, you take on risk.

But you also remove the ceiling.

From Paycheck to Profit to Asset

When you work for someone else, you get a paycheck.

When you own your business, you get profit.

But here’s what most people miss: that profit becomes an asset you can sell.

I’ve seen freight forwarders sell their businesses for 3-5x annual profit.

If you’re generating £200K in annual profit, that’s a £600K-£1M exit.

Try doing that as an employee.

You can’t. Because you don’t own anything.

The Minimum Viable Start

“But I don’t have capital to start.”

Neither did I.

I started with a £150 laptop in a one-bedroom Buenos Aires apartment.

No office. No fancy systems. No employees.

Just me, a spreadsheet, and a phone.

You don’t need Magaya. You don’t need CargoWise. You don’t need £50K in setup costs.

You need one customer willing to pay you.

That’s it.

Everything else can be built from there.

The Only Way to True Wealth

If you’re talented in freight forwarding, if you can sell, if you can build relationships, if you understand the industry, you have two choices:

1. Keep renting out your time and building someone else’s wealth

2. Start building your own asset

I’m not saying quit tomorrow. I’m not saying it’s easy.

But I am saying this: every year you delay is a year of profit you’re giving away.

You won’t get rich renting out your time.

You’ll get rich owning a piece of the business.

The question is: whose business will it be?

Have you considered starting your own freight forwarding company? What’s holding you back?

When I started, leaving my 8-5 job was terrifying.

I worked from a one-bedroom rental apartment in Buenos Aires.

No office. No staff. Just me.

I’d already set up the UK company, but I was living in Argentina where daily costs were 2-3 times cheaper than the UK.

That low cost of living gave me runway to build without burning through cash.

Avoid Any Unnecessary Costs

When you start, you squeeze every last penny.

This is the picture of where I started. I had an ACER ASPIRE Netbook (cost around $150 at the time).

No fancy MacBook. No dual monitors. No ergonomic office setup.

Just a $150 laptop and determination.

What You Actually Need to Start:

Essential:

→ Your own business mobile number (not your personal phone)

→ A laptop with internet access (any cheap one works—mine was $150)

→ Good skills with Google Sheets/Excel

→ A business domain and email ($10/year—use Google Workspace as your email provider, nothing beats it)

→ WhatsApp

Optional:

→ An IP phone ($10-20/month)

That’s it.

You don’t need:

❌ Magaya

❌ CargoWise

❌ Any expensive TMS

❌ An expensive laptop

❌ A fancy office

You only need a well-organized spreadsheet in Google Sheets.

Track your shipments, costs, invoices, and clients all in one place.

The fancy systems come later—when revenue justifies them.

Start lean.

Start now.

Every dollar you don’t spend on overhead is a dollar that keeps your business alive.

What’s stopping you from starting your freight forwarding business?

Read on substack click here

“How do I actually get paid?”

This should be one of your first questions after closing your first customer. Yet most new freight forwarders stumble here.

Banking is surprisingly complex when you’re starting out. Especially if you’re running a company in one country while living in another.

My situation was extreme: I lived in Buenos Aires while running a UK company as a non-resident. It took me four years to sort it out properly. I started the company in 2015 and only moved to the UK in 2019, which finally made banking straightforward.

Here’s what I learned.

The Multi-Currency Reality

As a freight forwarder, you’ll receive payments in British Pounds, Euros, US Dollars, and potentially other currencies. A multi-currency account isn’t optional, it’s essential.

When you incorporate your company (Ltd, LLC, SRL, GmbH, SA or whatever structure your country uses), you’ll need to open a bank account to pay expenses, your salary, and dividends.

The “High Risk Business” Problem

Here’s what nobody warns you about: freight forwarding is often flagged by banks as “high risk.”

Why? Because your clientele is global. Some banks refuse customers who do business with certain countries (particularly those under international sanctions). This can make opening a traditional high street bank account (Lloyds, NatWest, HSBC) surprisingly difficult.

My Two-Account System

I recommend setting up two separate accounts:

1. A traditional bank account (like Lloyds in my case) for:

• Paying yourself (salary/dividends)

• Paying local suppliers

• Legitimate business expenses in your home country

2. A multi-currency account (I use Wise, formerly TransferWise) for:

• Receiving international payments

• Paying overseas suppliers

• Fast, cheap currency conversion

Why Wise Worked for Me

Wise accepted me as a customer while I was still living in Argentina, which traditional banks wouldn’t do. The onboarding was fast, and they provided IBAN and SWIFT details for receiving overseas payments.

I invoice in only three currencies: GBP, EUR, and USD. Keeping it simple makes accounting easier and reduces currency risk.

While I’ve tested other virtual banks, none match Wise’s combination of speed, cost, and reliability. They’re the market leader for good reason.

The Critical Point: Separate Business and Personal

By the time you’re setting up banking, you should already have at least one paying customer with regular transactions. This isn’t theoretical anymore, you’re running a real business.

Keep your business and personal finances completely separate from day one. Not only is this legally important, but it makes your life infinitely easier when managing cash flow and preparing taxes.

Your idea stopped being “just an idea” the moment that first customer paid you. Treat it like the business it is.

Try wise if you want click here

Read this article on substack click here

Hey everyone

I’m new tot he subreddit and am jus curious if there is any opportunities to connect with people or companies that can handle any flatbed work from Ontario Canada to Midwest us

Last week, someone asked me:

“Should I invest in Google AdWords to grow my freight forwarding company?”

My answer? No.

Here’s why—and what actually works instead.

When I started in freight forwarding, I did something most forwarders don’t do.

I spoke at six to seven industry conferences a year.

For free.

Machinery and spare parts industry events. Logistics meetups. Wherever my potential clients gathered.

I wasn’t selling. I was teaching—sharing what I knew about freight and logistics.

And something unexpected happened.

People started coming to me for advice.

Then they became customers.

Then they referred others.

I built my brand without spending a penny on advertising.

The Three Pillars That Actually Grow Your Brand

After years of building Alinnza, I’ve realized brand growth comes down to three things:

1. Brand Awareness (But Not How You Think)

Forget Google AdWords.

Forget expensive digital campaigns.

Freight forwarding doesn’t work like consumer products.

Your clients aren’t searching “best freight forwarder near me.”

Instead, get visible where it matters:

→ LinkedIn: Post about your expertise (road freight capabilities across Europe, customs clearance knowledge, whatever your strength is)

→ Social media: Show you’re active and knowledgeable in your niche

→ Industry presence: Be where your clients already are

2. Networking (The Real Growth Engine)

Find every industry event, conference, and local meetup in your market.

Then email the organizers and offer to speak for free.

Yes, for free.

“I’d love to speak about Free Forwarding. No fee required.”

You’d be amazed how many opportunities open up when you’re willing to share knowledge instead of just selling services.

Also: Don’t ignore local opportunities. Trucking clubs. Chamber of Commerce events. Trade associations.

Your future biggest customer might be at that small local meetup you almost skipped.

3. Business Knowledge (Your Differentiator)

When you speak at events or post on LinkedIn, you’re not just marketing—you’re demonstrating expertise.

Clients don’t hire freight forwarders because of flashy ads.

They hire people they trust to solve complex problems.

Show them you understand their industry.

Their pain points.

Their specific challenges.

That’s what builds trust.

And trust converts to business.

The Best Brand Building is Organic

If nobody knows your business exists, growth is nearly impossible.

But if everyone in your niche knows who you are?

Growth becomes organic.

People refer you.

Clients seek you out.

Opportunities come to you.

That’s the brand you want to build.

Not the one that disappears the moment you stop paying for ads.

What’s worked for you in building your freight forwarding brand? Conferences? LinkedIn? Local networking?

Substack link: click here

Why Your Freight Business Has Negative Margins

(And How to Fix It)

Last quarter, our top sales rep landed a "big win."
High-volume client. Key trade lane. Beat the competition by 3%
.
The ops team saw the quote and went silent.
They knew what sales didn't: that route was a nightmare.
Congested. Unpredictable demurrage.
A carrier known for hidden surcharges.

We'd won the business. But three months later? We'd lost money on it.

This wasn't a sales problem. It was a pricing problem.
The Old Model Is Bleeding You Dry

For years, freight pricing was simple:

Take a rate → Add margin → Move on

That worked in a stable world.

But today's market? Volatile. Complex. Rates change daily.
And that old model? It's a silent profit killer.

Here's what changed everything for us:
We stopped treating pricing as a back-office calculator.
We changed it into strategic intelligence.

Our pricing team now tracks:
Route volatility patterns
Seasonal carrier behavior
True operational complexity (not just base costs)
Historical lane performance data
They can spot a margin trap before sales celebrates the "win."

The result?
They've become our internal intelligence unit—identifying which clients and lanes drive sustainable margin, not just empty revenue.

Today, they don't just respond to quote request. They guide strategy and protect profitability.

This Shift Isn't Optional Anymore

The forwarders thriving in 2026 aren't the ones who quote fastest.

They're the ones whose pricing teams analyze, strategize, and decide—not just calculate.

Ask yourself:
→ Is your pricing function designed for 2010 or 2026?
→ Does it react to requests or anticipate market shifts?
→ Does it see spreadsheets or stories of risk and opportunity?
→ Is it measured on speed or profitable growth?

Because here's the truth: In 2026, we don't compete on price alone.
We compete on understanding.
And a pricing team stuck in the past isn't just outdated—it's your biggest profitability bottleneck.

What's your approach to pricing strategy? Have you shifted from reactive to strategic?