5 months in at a startup brokerage — honest read on where I'm at?
Been brokering for 5 months. I'm with a startup so we've got our hands completely full, and I'll be the first to say I've been pretty lucky on a few of these wins. Looking for an honest gut check from people who've been in it longer.
• 62 calls/day on average
• 120 unique email addresses to specific logistics managers, freight handlers, and warehouse managers (not generic inboxes)
• ~25 follow-up emails a day
• 2-4 quotes/week to brand new customers
Book of business so far:
• About 10 companies I've moved freight for. Mostly small shippers, mostly rough freight, tbh.
• One steady customer averaging $3,318/week gross margin for the last 2 months. Their consignee is totally packed out so shipments are paused, but the shipper is still very communicative and feeding me quotes. I don't think I've lost them — feel like I handled the relationship well.
• Just landed a major multi-regional company. Starting with one store but they want all their freight through me. They got attracted to our system over lunch — honestly a lucky fit.
• Ran one 4,400 mile load Alaska → Florida. Same customer has a big summer project lined up on similar lanes.
• Quoted some international freight — numbers were good but the order got fully canceled.
Know I've still got a ton to learn. Where should a 5-month broker actually be at this point, and what would you be doing differently if you were me?