Former Saia President Buys N.C. Carrier

Former Saia Motor Freight Line President Jimmy Crisp is the new owner of Dixie Trucking, a Charlotte, N.C.-based less-than-truckload carrier specializing in next-day delivery of freight in the Carolinas, northern Georgia and southern Virginia.

The deal reflects an emerging trend in which experienced trucking managers are getting financial backing to buy their own companies.

Crisp resigned effective Aug. 31 after five years as president of Atlanta-based Saia, a subsidiary of Yellow Corp., Overland Park, Kan. (8-30, p. 4).

American Capital Strategies of Bethesda, Md., said it will provide $4.2 million in senior subordinated debt with detachable warrants to finance the buyout of Dixie. Wachovia Bank will provide senior term loan funding and a revolving credit facility.

Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

In a statement issued by American Capital, Crisp said he had observed Dixie in the marketplace for many years and admired its focus on service.

“It has a market niche that I don’t believe any other company can touch,” he said.

Dixie hauls textiles, chemicals and industrial supplies, and operates a modified hub-and-spoke network that ensures freight is delivered before 10 a.m. each day. In addition to a main terminal in Charlotte, the company has satellite facilities in Raleigh and Wilmington, N.C., and Columbia, S.C.

For the full story, see the Sept. 6 print edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.