It’s a story as old as industry itself – a small but impactful establishment seeing its place in history erased at the hands of swelling corporate juggernauts.
Since the dawn of business as we know it, businesses have always competed for customers – just like customers compete for the best deal. There’s only so much to go around, and that’s true even when the business is trucking.
But not all establishments are carriers with fleets of 18-wheelers ready to go out and make deliveries, nor are they all warehouses waiting for truckers to roll up. There are important stopping points along the way. For the trucker on the road, hungry, perhaps tired and in need of a safe place to stop, a good rest stop is a godsend.
One of these tiny truck stops sat just off I-35 in Iowa for nearly half-a-century under the operation of Bob and Mim Welch. Proudly brandishing the title of mom-n-pop shop in every sense of the term, this enduring and intimate establishment provided a lot of relief for truck drivers throughout many decades and multiple eras in the US truck driving industry.
But all good things must come to an end – and this little truck stop’s end seem to come at the hands of none other than big business. Big competition with more to offer in terms of facilities meant the Boondocks USA Truckstop was in a tough spot. Talking about their bittersweet day on social media, they prepared to shut down in the face of irreconcilable economic difficulties.
Those difficulties were compounded by health issues faced by the owners. But after a month out of business, something miraculous happened – the little company got help from an unlikely source and is now back in business. That source? Big business itself.
A California-based truck driving company named Anyway Logistics purchased the establishment for $500,000 and will be keeping many things the same as they’ve been for decades. President David Bhillon said: “Our plan is to reopen it and do the same thing they were doing before. We will just clean up the property and bring it up to date.”
Seeing the establishment continue on has to be heartwarming for the owners, who don’t want to see their establishment of 45-years simply rot away. Knowing it will continue being a resource that truckers can depend on, now operated with backing from a successful name of the industry, has to be a good feeling.
While it was the first truck stop the company has purchased, and the owners of Anyway Logistics admitted there was a lot of work ahead for them, they were thankful for the opportunity.
Truck stops are an important part of the trucker’s journey – their ability to offer a safe place to stop and rest is crucial, especially since many establishments with large parking lots won’t accommodate commercial vehicles – especially for long periods of time. And, Anyway Logistics could potentially use this experience as a means to acquire other organizations and build their network even further.
