Reorganization pays off with 200% growth in revenues for TAG Truck Enterprises

When Tommy Earl and Gary Dodson purchased four of Barloworld Truck Center’s dealerships in the summer of 2007, they say their $25 million bought the best Barloworld had to offer in the Freightliner business.

“We always say we were blessed to get the best customers and best employees,” Earl says.

The service center and dealership locations are in Jackson, Tenn., Jonesboro, Ark., Tupelo, Miss., with headquarters in Memphis. With the purchases, which were made possible through a loan from DaimlerChrysler, the parent company of truck manufacturer Freightliner LLC, Earl and Dodson formed TAG Truck Enterprises LLC.

The name TAG is an acronym for Tommy and Gary. Perhaps this intrinsic link between themselves and their business explains TAG’s commitment to customer service and satisfaction and their personal touch with the day-to-day operations.

TAG’s customer service is in stark contrast to what the South African-owned Barloworld provided, says Mark Cooper, general manager and co-owner of Cooper Freight Service, Inc.

“I have Tommy’s and Gary’s home numbers and cell numbers,” he says. “One phone call takes care of things usually. It has improved 100% over Barloworld.”

Though TAG was helped statistically by the late start in 2007, their service quality and internal reorganization initiatives paid off for 2008 in the form of 214% gross revenue growth to $116 million. TAG ranks No. 1 on Memphis Business Journal.