Transportation and logistics leaders launched Open Road Ventures (ORV), a group focused on acquiring small-to-mid-sized freight brokerage firms, strengthening their operations, and inviting owners to partner in creating their own multi-year exit strategy.
With more than 38 years in the industry, Mike Riccio is founder of More Than Miles Consulting and a former sales and marketing VP for Leonard’s Express.
A 44-year industry veteran, Ron Faherty currently serves as president of ARL Network.
For more than 31 years, David Antonson has held senior leadership positions for transportation providers, including the last 24 years as president of US1 Industries.
With more than 15 years in executive leadership, John Kellenberger is COO of US1 Industries and a former practicing transportation lawyer with expertise in brokerage liability.
“Running a brokerage today is harder than ever,” says Riccio. “Changing markets, rising costs, talent challenges, and a nonstop race to keep up with technology — we understand these pressures because we’ve faced them ourselves. We’re transportation people, not just ‘money people.’ We know what it’s like to chase freight, deal with tight margins, and lose sleep over cash flow. That’s exactly why we built something different in Open Road Ventures.”
“When ORV acquires a company, we take responsibility for providing the resources and capital to fund the business while allowing the company’s brand and employees to remain the same,” adds Riccio. “Business owners continue to run day-to-day operations even after they become part of our larger network.”
Key takeaways:
· ORV’s leadership team provides consultative and executive services, including marketing and business development strategies to help firms achieve their revenue and profit goals.
- ORV brings brokerages under one operating structure to leverage shared resources (such as technology) and achieve cost savings.
- It optimizes operations, people, and processes without stripping away the brokerage’s identity.
- And it provides access to top industry leaders for strategic positioning and to drive profitable revenue growth.
“Our leadership team understands the complexities of freight hauling,” says Faherty. “More importantly, we understand the dynamics of family-run businesses. We respect these close relationships because we’ve experienced them. This is what differentiates us from venture capital firms that prioritize money over family.”
