Mainfreight Australia History and Turnaround

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Could you tell us more about how Mainfreight established their less than truckload business in Australia?

The business struggled for a decade during the 90s, barely surviving and negatively impacting results. Many advised the company to exit Australia due to these challenges.

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Could you tell us more about how Mainfreight established their less than truckload business in Australia?

In the mid-90s, an investment banker named Chris Dunphy joined Mainfreight in New Zealand. He led the acquisition of a large operator in New Zealand, significantly boosting the company's size. Given the struggles in Australia, the company decided to send Chris to Australia to identify potential acquisition opportunities to build critical mass. In the late 90s to early 2000s, Chris identified an Australian company called K&S Freighters. K&S Freighters was a competent full truckload operator with an immature, small freight network. Chris saw the potential and initiated a takeover.

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How did Mainfreight manage to build this credibility from scratch?

Furthermore, they identified a gap in the one, two, three pallet customer base market for everyday freight. There was a void between courier services and large volume market, with not much competition. The business decided to focus on this area. By sticking to everyday freight, the business could maintain and slightly expand its network under the radar.

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