Commitment-free solution keeping startup brokerages competitive

If there’s one thing the freight industry isn’t in short supply of, it’s a steady stream of startup brokerages. 

These mostly small and medium-sized players burst onto the scene during the pandemic as many looked to capitalize on freight volatility. The going has been good for many, but not everyone has had it easy.

When things get tough, brokerages find themselves in a game of survival.

Remaining competitive in a softening market continues to challenge smaller brokerages as it becomes harder to justify increasing spend on software solutions while trying to tighten up costs. 

No matter how you slice it, cash flow problems are inevitable.

“Cash flow is pretty much king and really the main concern when it comes to going out of business,” said Michael Colin, founder and CEO of MVMNT. “Brokers and carriers both suffer from the trifecta of razor-thin margins, high operating costs and poor access to capital.”

Sure, a startup brokerage is arbitrage, but what happens when you need to pay your carriers? How do you handle being denied by a factor? These questions stirred the mind of Colin.

With cash flow and technology constraints rendering smaller brokerages uncompetitive, MVMNT is the freight management software that’s leveling the playing field — subscription-free.

MVMNT’s commitment-free model is bringing enterprise-level technology downstream to smaller brokerages, helping them alleviate the capital limitations that come with choosing a quality TMS. 

The problem with most TMS setups, other than expense, is their limitations. With an off-the-shelf TMS specifically, Colin says they eventually inhibit the ability to manage data properly and generate additional revenue. 

This leads many brokerages to build their own TMS upon hitting a revenue goal. But those with ongoing cash flow issues find themselves lacking time to adopt new technology, especially as capacity moves quickly.

Colin pitches MVMNT with a two-part conversation: “We’ll help you save money by not spending it on a bunch of SaaS [software-as-a-service], which then we can turn into additional revenue as well.”

“Try it out,” suggests Colin. “Even if you just use our product for enabling QuickPay while keeping your existing system, that at least gets the conversation started, then we can show how we can improve their business from there.”

Click for more FreightWaves content by Jack Glenn.

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