A Tennessee logistics company is growing its footprint as it drives toward $1 billion in revenue.
In October, Collierville, Tennessee-based IMC moved into the Louisville market via its subsidiary, Ohio Intermodal Services (OIS). OIS opened an 11-acre facility, which is centrally located near CSX and Norfolk Southern railroads, and 14 miles from the Port of Louisville.
Katie George Hooser, chief marketing officer for IMC, told the Memphis Business Journal that the company is building out its team of operations personnel and drivers at the location. The plan for the Louisville facility is that it becomes a full-service depot.
She said going into the Louisville area was part of the company’s growth plan to increase opportunities in the Ohio Valley.
“The Ohio Valley region is an area that is currently underserved by transportation carriers hauling and storing containers from rail yards in Louisville, so opening our new facility there was a natural next step in effectively serving customers throughout this region,” Hooser said in a statement to MBJ.
OIS also recently broke ground on a headquarters and drayage facility in Columbus, Ohio. The expansion in the central U.S. follows IMC's East and West Coast operating companies opening facilities over the past year, as well.
Expanding the IMC network
IMC is comprised of seven operating companies, which includes Atlantic Intermodal Services; DNJ Intermodal Service; Gulf Intermodal Services; H&M Intermodal Services; Intermodal Cartage Company; Ohio Intermodal Services; and Pacific Drayage Services.
Over the summer, IMC and H&M Intermodal Services jointly opened a truck and depot terminal in Newark, New Jersey. The 10-acre facility has a yard with storage for 1,200 containers, plus a 20,000-square-foot warehouse and a freight transfer facility, which is expected to open in spring 2023.
Also this summer, Pacific Drayage Services (PDS) opened a location in Bakersfield, California. That facility has room for the storage of 100 containers on chassis and 10,000 square feet of warehousing space. PDS also opened a Riverside, California, location offering storage and cross dock services.
“IMC has always had a long-term approach to container drayage,” Mark George, chairman of IMC, said in a statement to MBJ. “We have been fortunate enough over the past few years to recognize the unique position that IMC has in the market and our intention is to continue to invest in our business to shore up these competitive advantages. The Newark and Bakersfield expansions play right into that strategy of investing in good long-term opportunities in the marketplace that will continue to pay dividends to our customers and drivers for many years to come.”
According to Hooser, IMC — which is the largest marine drayage company in the U.S. — has 2,641 employees on staff companywide and 729 employees in the Memphis area. IMC has over 2,200 trucks and over 50 locations in the U.S.
And the company has continued to see revenue growth over the past few years. IMC — which registered $450 million in annual revenue during the pandemic hit fiscal 2020 year — earned $982 billion in 2021 revenue.
Company officials said IMC is projected to surpass $1 billion in revenue in 2022. From 2019 to 2021, IMC had the second-highest revenue growth rate — 182.8% — among Memphis' largest private companies, according to MBJ research. In November 2021, IMC bought land next to its new HQ in Collierville, with plans for a new building to support such growth.
“IMC is a growth-oriented company. We strategically expand where we see opportunities to provide more comprehensive services for our customers,” George said.