The Ramp Up

In this episode, we explore the impactful work of Move for Hunger, a nonprofit dedicated to reducing food waste and fighting hunger through innovative food recovery programs. Our guests, Stephanie De La Hoz and Kyla Crisp, share insights into their initiatives, challenges, and how partnerships with logistics providers like Hoplite are transforming food rescue efforts.

00:00 - Introduction and Guest Welcome

00:50 - Guest Introductions and Experience: Stephanie and Kyla introduce themselves and describe their backgrounds in food banking and non-profit work

03:03 - History and Mission of Move for Hunger: Stephanie details how the organization was founded 17 years ago by Adam Loey to prevent food waste during residential moves

05:08 - Scaling Impact and Evolving Logistics: Discussion on how the organization expanded from small residential pickups to a charity freight network moving over 70 million pounds of food annually

07:54 - How Food Donations are Sourced: Insights into how the organization identifies donations through outreach to farms, manufacturers, and partnerships with other food recovery groups

09:40 - Building the Charity Freight Network: Stephanie explains the trial-and-error process of building a sophisticated logistics network without prior industry backgrounds

14:22 - Addressing Shipper Concerns and Liability: A look at the common hurdles for donors, including liability fears and the protection offered by the Bill Emerson Act

18:50 - How to Get Involved: Information for shippers and organizations interested in partnering with Move for Hunger through their website and social media

19:32 - Current Challenges: Gas Prices and Logistics: Kyla discusses the impact of rising fuel costs on their budget and the logistical effort of coordinating large-scale produce drops

22:11 - Flexibility in Distribution: The benefits of working outside restricted food bank networks to ensure rejected or surplus loads are moved quickly

24:42 - Preventing Waste Across All Food Types: Why the organization chooses to repurpose non-nutritious food items (like ice cream toppings) to prevent landfill waste

27:08 - New Initiatives: Freight Savings Program: Overview of a new program helping food banks reduce their own transportation costs by leveraging the charity's logistics support

29:12 - Community Outreach and Events: Discussion on "activations" at industry conferences where attendees can participate in meal-packing events

31:10 - Partnership Gratitude and Closing: Closing remarks reflecting on the 1.7 million pounds of food moved through this specific partnership over the last year

In this episode, hosts Rich and Bryan open with a little fun (yes, they really ask: “how cool is Tom Holland?”) before diving into one of the biggest drivers of startup success — culture. They sit down with Macy Chambers and Neha Soi to discuss their career journeys and what it takes to build a company like BERO from the ground up, including early mistakes, key launch lessons, and the critical role of supply chain in making a retail brand stand out.

From there, the conversation shifts to the carrier side of the business: what makes a carrier credible from a shipper’s perspective, how Hoplite Logistics stays laser-focused on the shipper experience, and where growth is headed next. The group explores how technology and intuition combine to guide both teams’ evolution, while also touching on the importance of in-person relationships and Neha’s transition from freight brokerage to the shipper side.

Whether you’re launching a startup, scaling operations, or simply curious about how culture, supply chain, and technology intersect, this episode offers a backstage pass into the making of two different—but closely connected—growth stories. Tune in for an inside look at what’s working, what’s shifting, and what’s ahead for BERO and Hoplite.

00:00 – Intro to BERO and how cool is Tom Holland?

03:20 – Building culture at a start-up

05:49 – Macy and Neha’s career journeys

08:42 – Building BERO from the ground up

12:41 – Lessons learned from several start-up launches

16:08 – Importance of supply chain in retail start-ups

17:59 – What makes a carrier credible from their viewpoint?

19:50 – How awesome Hoplite Sales Director Rob Conard is

21:16 – Hoplite’s growth and focus on the shipper experience

23:19 – Pivot points and the role of intuition

28:33 – Neha’s quick transition from a freight brokerage to the shipper side

31:57 – Importance of in-person visits for relationship-building

35:44 – Hoplite and BERO’s approach to technology

41:46 – What does the future hold for BERO?

44:49 – Working with large retailers

AI is reshaping nearly every industry, and freight and logistics are no exception. Among the companies leading this transformation is Augment, a rising force in freight brokerage technology.

In this episode, hosts Rich and Bryan sit down with Justin Hall, CCO of Augment, to dive into the company’s mission, capabilities, and vision for the future. Justin shares his unique background, the lessons that shaped his career, and why Augment is positioning itself as a game-changer for brokers.

Looking ahead, what will freight look like in the next 2–3 years as innovation accelerates? Justin offers his insights—and explains how you and your company can start capitalizing on these changes today.

00:01 – Intro & Culture Building

06:29 – Justin’s Background & Freight Journey

16:23 – The Origins of Augment

21:37 – Why Hoplite Partnered with Augment

23:49 – Augment’s Mission

28:32 – The Promise of AI in Freight

32:32 – Startup Culture & Work–Life Balance

36:30 – Augment’s Commitment to Customers

37:47 – Do Shippers Care About AI? The Real Value Add

39:34 – Long-Term Applications of AI in Freight

44:43 – The Role of Tribal Knowledge in Logistics

46:10 – Augment’s Biggest Challenges to Date

48:37 – Taking the Leap: Starting Your Own Business

50:38 – Why Shippers Choose Hoplite

In the seventh episode of The Ramp Up, Rich and Bryan chat with former Borderless Coverage CEO Mark Vickers. Borderless Coverage was acquired by Reliance Partners in 2021, where Mark now works as Head of International Logistics. The trio discuss the state of cross-border freight in Mexico, best practices for shippers moving in and out of Mexico, and what you can do to best negate risk south of the border. Mark's background with Mexico freight in particular has made him an industry expert on the topic. If you are a shipper who is already moving Mexico freight, this is an episode you will not want to miss.

00:01 – Status update on Hoplite

01:11 – What did we underestimate?

03:50 – What are we pleased with?

06:08 – Importance of security measures with Mexico Cross-border freight

14:00 – Mark Vickers intro and Borderless Coverage background

18:00 – Reliance Partners shipper insurance coverage and trends

26:14 – Mexico cross-border policy changes in recent years

33:31 – What does Mexico need to change to curb rampant cargo theft?

38:55 – What do first-time shippers need to know about moving cross-border Mexico?

42:38 – What regions in Mexico should shippers invest in?

45:31 – 8th Annual Modernization of Cross-Border Trade Event

In the sixth episode of The Ramp Up, Rich and Bryan chat with Cargado Co-Founder & CEO Matt Silver. Cargado is a freight marketplace focused on cross-border solutions and a strategic partner of Hoplite. Matt's background with Mexico freight in particular has made him an industry expert on the topic, and he shares his deep insight into the tariff situation, how it impacts Mexico cross-border, and what he expects to see over the coming months. The trio also discuss the start-up process for both of Matt's ventures (Forager and Cargado) and lessons learned in the process.

00:00 – Intro & Matt’s background with Coyote, Forager, and Cargado

03:27 – Finding his Mexico Freight Niche

10:54 – Building Forager: The Early Days

14:25 – Lessons Learned from Forager: Starting a Brokerage

19:49 - Navigating Funding and Investment in Freight

22:07 – Starting Cargado: Filling a Hole in the Market

25:07 – Future of the Platform

28:35 – The Team-building Approach of Cargado

31:26 – The Current Tariff Landscape & Trade Dynamics

35:17 – Future Mexico & Canada Trade with the Trump Administration

38:27 – Forecasting the 2025 US Market

41:37 – Matt’s Emerging Tech Platforms in Freight

In the fifth episode of The Ramp Up, Rich and Bryan discuss their thought process when choosing their technology partners, including demo'ing 10 different TMS platforms. They give their high-level thoughts on all 10 and reveal their choice. Lastly, they give their top three choices for emerging tech platforms within the freight brokerage industry.

00:00 – Intro

00:50 – Manifest impressions and takeaways

03:14 – HR and Payroll Platforms (Rippling)

04:49 – Importance of a PEO for remote workforces

06:41 – The TMS decision-making process for Hoplite

09:17- Descartes Alijex

09:53 – Alvys

11:18 – Roserocket

13:04 – 3PL Systems

14:50 – Revenova

17:41 – Turvo

19:55 – MVMNT

23:03 – WaveTMS

26:38 – Tai Software

30:00 – What should you look for and what did was learned?

33:04 – Pricing Platforms (Greenscreens, SONAR, DAT)

37:57 – Compliance and Onboarding Platforms (Highway/RMIS/MyCP)

43:20 – GPS Tracking (Macropoint)

43:53 – GenLogs

44:24 – Phone Systems (Grasshopper, RingCentral)

44:50 – Cargado

45:52 –Bitfreighter

46:09 – Needs versus Wants and mistakes made

50:17 – TOP 3 DISCUSSION – Top Emerging Tech

50:52 – GoodShip

52:52 – GenLogs (continued)

54:22 – Cargado (continued)

57:02 – AI Agent Platforms

1:00:30 - Recap

In the fourth episode of The Ramp Up, Rich and Bryan chat with Journey Founder Will Jenkins. Will was previously a Co-Founder of MoLo, an extremely successful third party logistics provider who was acquired by ArcBest in 2021. Will has since founded Journey, a transportation-focused recruiting and training academy that is quickly growing. The three discuss Journey's state-of-the-art AI role-playing bot and how this could be the future of Sales training. They also touch on the importance of culture, how to optimize the interviewing process, and which characteristics matter the most when hiring Salespeople.

0:00 - Intro

3:44 - Journey’s AI-based training platform

7:40 - Journey’s origins and strategy

9:53 - Journey’s marketing

14:03 - Journey’s launch versus MoLo’s

15:39 - Building a great culture

18:11 - Best interviewing practices

24:01 - Importance of training

24:57 - Training in a remote environment

29:36 - Screening for Journey and its customers

35:51 - Sales training and strategy 42:34 - ROI timeline for Sales hires 47:02 - Sales-focused interviews

48:45 - Top characteristic for a sales person

In the third episode of The Ramp Up, co-hosts Rich and Bryan discuss their goals for the culture at Hoplite and how they approached hiring to accomplish that.They finish the episode ranking the top three qualities each of them look for when interviewing candidates.

00:00 - Intro

01:56 - Defining the company pillars

04:21 - Hiring people with a helpful mindset

07:33 - Building culture from scratch and in a remote environment

08:43 - Importance of consistency and transparency

14:01 - In-person onboarding and face-to-face importance

16:33 - Navigating the hiring process for Sales at Hoplite

19:55 – Why Guadalajara for the Mexican entity?

22:38 – Hiring from other brokerages

26:37 – RANKED – Top candidate attributes

In episode 2 of The Ramp Up, co-hosts Rich & Bryan place a Hoplite Spotlite on Greenscreens.ai, a real-time pricing platform in the logistics industry. While their platform is best-in-class, it is their marketing strategy that is discussed as they have curated a phenomenal approach to brand image and culture-building alike. Speaking with Vice President of Marketing Celine Clayton and Vice President of Customer Success Rachel Backfisch, they dive into many topics that are applicable to business of all sizes and industries.

Topics include:

00:00 – Intro to Celine and Rachel

03:00 – Their approach to marketing

05:55 – Effect of good culture on marketing & the brand

08:02 – Social media marketing

12:42 – LinkedIn’s impact on marketing in logistics

14:50 – Partnerships in marketing strategy

17:16 – KPIs and analytics to monitor in marketing

19:50 – Most effective low-cost marketing channels

24:14 – How to hack the LinkedIn algorithm

28:03 – Greenscreens branding origin story

33:42 – Company pillars tying into marketing

38:10 – Rebranding timeline

40:48 – Greenscreens almost had a mascot?

42:18 – Flexing some creative muscle

43:19 – Top logistics brands right now?

45:33 – Super Bowl hopefuls

In the first episode of The Ramp Up, co-hosts Rich and Bryan discuss their decision to leave their previous roles and embark on the start-up journey, how difficult that decision and process was, and the origins and branding of Hoplite Logistics. They finish the episode ranking their top three favorite brands in the logistics world right now.

0:00- Intro to the podcast

4:08 - Co-hosts backgrounds

6:29 - The leap of faith

12:26 - Doubts creeping in

15:13 - Origin of the branding

19:44 - Podcast goal

20:38 - Bryan’s decision to join

23:55 - Our favorite logistics brands right now