Redwood Logistics acquiring Chicago neighbor Strive

The two firms will create a multimodal logistics company with more than $1 billion in freight under management.

   Two Chicago-based logistics companies are combining.
   Redwood Logistics is acquiring Strive Logistics in a deal that it said will create “a technology-focused, high-growth industry leader that is both a top 15 truck broker and an emerging multimodal logistics provider with over $1 billion in freight under management.”
   Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
   Strive, which was founded in 1995, is a non-asset multimodal 3PL with offices in Chicago and Austin, Texas.
   “Strive has made significant investments in both its people and its proprietary technology, and we are very excited to welcome the Strive team and its technology to the Redwood family,” Mark Yeager, CEO of Redwood, said. “We see this as a major step in establishing Redwood as an industry leader and a transformative force in the marketplace.”
   Yeager was formerly vice chairman and president of Hub Group before leaving the company in 2015.
   Redwood President Todd Berger added, “We are focused on bringing next-generation, tech-driven solutions so that our customers can continue to realize cost savings and efficiencies and achieve their shipping goals. Strive’s high-caliber team, blue-chip customer base, focus on technology, geographic reach and the clear similarities in how we work to serve our customers make Strive the perfect merger candidate. We are thrilled to join forces with the Strive team and can’t wait to see what the future holds for Redwood.”
   The combined company will operate under the Redwood brand, and Strive CEO Ben Greene, President Jon Provus and the rest of Strive’s management team will be joining the Redwood organization.
   “Redwood Logistics is the ideal partner for Strive due to our compatible cultures and shared focus on addressing our customers’ most critical logistics challenges through the effective combination of people and technology,” said Greene.
   In 2017, Redwood combined with Simplified Logistics, an Ohio-based less-than-truckload logistics provider acquired by CI Capital in February 2017. In January 2018, the private equity firm CI Capital announced it had acquired a majority interest in Redwood.