The KAG Fuels team was confident the business nosedive from the pandemic would turn around, but how soon that would happen and how strong the recovery would be were unknowns. The situation provided us with a strong push to do some things differently.

The push encouraged us to look beyond our core business of bulk liquid and expand into different areas of trucking. One new area for us was power-only services. Customers began to rely on us to provide the driver and power unit to haul their trailers. This service gives customers the flexibility to load their trailers on their schedule, then let us know when they’re ready for them to move.

Hauling this dry freight has enabled us to recruit drivers with different qualifications since they don’t need the tanker endorsement required to haul fuel. By doing this we’ve given the driver, without a tank and hazmat endorsement, a career path within KAG. It also gives us a stronger pipeline of drivers we can train to move into hazmat transportation.

Another big change driven by the pandemic was the creation of even stronger partnerships. We’ve always strived to build partnerships rather than just customer relationships. The tumultuous shifts in demand that occurred during the shutdowns encouraged many customers to build even closer ties with KAG, giving them increased confidence that we will continue to be there to support them. Those ties will remain long after the pandemic is behind us and as life returns to normal.

The pandemic helped us reshape our view of the future of KAG Fuels. And it’s an exciting future for KAG and our customers. It has made us an even more capable, reliable and flexible partner as we continue growing our network and expanding our services.

“It encouraged us to look beyond our core business of bulk liquid and expand into different areas of trucking.”