In October, Bryan Johnson and Joe Kiefer opened Darkhorse Cargo in Mottville.
Darkhorse is a new name in the cargo trailer industry, but Johnson and Kiefer are not new to the business.
The company was born from adversity — each co-owner was fired by the industry. Now, they are the dark horse, coming out of nowhere to succeed, Kiefer said.
Johnson, a native of White Pigeon, began working in the cargo trailer industry for his uncle, Warren Johnson at Haulmark Cargo, followed him to several other companies and became an owner. He knows the business from the ground up.
Kiefer has been working in industry finance for more than 25 years. The two met when both were employees of a company in Indiana.
Over the course of time, the company changed hands. First, Johnson was let go. A few months later, Kiefer was cut.
Both had options of how to proceed in life, but they got together and decided to build a company where they could succeed by making it a good place for employees and provide a quality product.
As it turned out, they bought property where Johnson’s uncle Warren had set up shop back in the day. Warren’s widow still owned it and was happy to sell to her nephew.
It had been rented out for a decade or so and was in pretty rough shape, but they got everything from office space to the production area up and running by late October.
Several of the staff later admitted to Johnson his vision for the property exceeded theirs. It took a lot of work, but he was right.
Then there is the issue of employees. During the planning phase, Johnson’s wife asked him what his biggest concern was.
Employees, he said.
He had reason to be concerned.
In the cargo trailer industry, employees come and go, Kiefer said. They work in one place until a better offer comes along.
But Johnson also knew the people in the workforce. He’d managed production floors for years and knows what it takes to lead, train and equip employees.
When news got around they were hiring, applications flooded in, Kiefer said. Applicants one or both of them knew, so they hired the top talent. Now Johnson and Kiefer are working towards longevity among their staff of 45.
“We want to come to work and enjoy it,” Johnson said. “We want to have a smile on our faces.”
Everyone works better when they are smiling, he said.
But they don’t live to work, Kiefer said. They work to live and want the same for their staff.
Having satisfied customers is also part of the process.
Johnson knows all the warranty problems of cargo trailers — all the parts that cause problems for the buyers.
One is that the tongue rusts out. And during production, the paint most companies use on the tongue doesn’t dry easily in Michigan weather. So they found a product that protects against rust and dries within 15 minutes of application.
The roof of cargo trailers is another problem. It often leaks so Darkhorse crafted a roof of one piece of metal without seams.
Customers complain that doors leak, so they buy doors from the RV industry that are made to seal out water, Johnson said.
The floors of the trailer often rot and the metal undercarriage rusts — all thing they addressed before building the first trailer.
Now Darkhorse has built 360 trailers since October and shipped more than 200. Delivery drivers are recommending more dealers and the Darkhorse reputation is growing.
Last week was a good week. Kiefer said they made more money than they spent. In the first few months of business, that’s good news, Johnson said.
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