Former NFL star Desmond Clark admits his journey from the gridiron as a 12-year veteran, playing seven of those years as a good end for the Chicago Bears to starting his own brokerage, Bear Down Logistics, has been difficult but said he was determined to achieve this tumultuous freight market.
At FreightWaves’ Way forward for Supply Chain event in Cleveland on Wednesday, Clark said he wasn’t aware of the precarious freight conditions when he opened his company greater than a yr ago, but that he tapped into the determination he developed as an expert football player to achieve the brokerage industry.
“I’ve been doubted on every level, but on every level I’ve succeeded,” said Clark, who played for the Bears from 2003 to 2010. “I feel it’s because, over time, I understand what winning means. Once you really understand what winning means — what it means to realize or succeed by struggle — most individuals don’t wish to must undergo that struggle. I embrace the struggle.”
Prior to playing for the Bears, he also played for the Denver Broncos and the Miami Dolphins.
Prior to jumping into the logistics world, Clark said, he wished someone had told him to seek out a distinct segment commodity and grow to be an authority in that area before branching out his freight brokerage.
“After I first got into it, I used to be just saying, ‘Give me freight, give me freight,’ but I feel like I might be even further along than I’m now if I’d have picked a particular commodity and gained knowledge quicker,” he said.
After opening Bear Down Logistics, which has offices in Orlando, Florida, and Chicago, it took Clark six weeks to book his first load. But giving up wasn’t an option.
“Once you exit and begin making calls, you gotta fake it until you make it,” he said. “I used to be telling those that I had all of those trucks in your area and I hadn’t booked a load yet and I didn’t have a single truck. I hated every minute of that.”
Now, when Clark talks to his agents, he tells them to “be authentic” and lean into the indisputable fact that they’re recent to the industry. He also advises them to ask questions on the sales calls to learn more a couple of potential client’s needs.
“The last query that I tell my agents to ask is that once I come back to you, what hurdles do I even have to beat in order that you can grow to be a client of mine or I could grow to be a vendor of yours,” Clark said.
Clark said he has learned to do his due diligence when hiring agents to make sure they plan to stick with Bear Down Logistics long run.
“I needed to get deep with myself and understand who I desired to cope with and who I wanted to offer my time to, and for me, it’s about specializing in ex-athletes,” Clark said. “I speak a typical language with them and I do know what style of motivation they’ve because I understand what they’ve been through.”
Way forward for Supply Chain
JUNE 21-22, 2023 • CLEVELAND, OH • IN-PERSON EVENT
The best minds within the transportation, logistics and provide chain industries will share insights, predict future trends and showcase emerging technology the FreightWaves way–with engaging discussions, rapid-fire demos, interactive sponsor kiosks and more.