Great Plains Transportation Services

17-employee Fairmont business excels in little-known industry.

Photo by Jeff Silker

The business partnership represented by a windmill logo may be one of the best-kept secrets in southern Minnesota, even though the partnership provides multi-faceted services to a variety of clients. Other area business owners and entrepreneurs don’t necessarily know about it, despite its location on Fairmont’s main drag, Highway 15. The business has been around since November 1995, but has kept a low profile while growing exponentially since being founded.

The company described is Great Plains Transportation Services, Inc., which has as a motto, “We are large enough to handle your business…Small enough to care about you!” The “we” includes company president Jan (with a hard “J” sound) Bosma, vice president Sherri L. DeJong, and a dedicated staff of 17 employees. 

A quick analysis of the owners’ names provides a possible explanation for the windmill logo, but the Dutch thread spins out farther than that. It includes a father and son, Arlan and Dave VanWyk respectively, whom Bosma explained thus: “I was laid off from a job in 1992 and had an opportunity to start a truck brokerage business with Arlan and Dave. I had worked for them before and had other transportation experience.” The business, VTS (VanWyk Transportation Services, Inc.), is still in operation 17 years later, working with hundreds of trucking companies to match trucks with loads to be shipped. Bosma is still a partner, but that’s just the beginning of the story.

 

When Bosma heard of a business in Des Moines, Iowa, that was factoring, i.e., turning clients’ invoices into quick cash for a percentage of the total, they decided to give it a try. That enterprise, begun in 1995, was spun off as a separate S corporation, Great Plains Transportation Services, Inc., with Bosma at the helm. A mutual friend connected Bosma with DeJong, who brought to Great Plains her legal and insurance experience in licensing and permitting of trucks.

As with most successful partnerships, DeJong and Bosma bring different strengths to their work. She describes herself as detail-oriented; Bosma as a visionary and extrovert. Their partnership success was evident in 2001, when they bought out the VanWyks.

“When Arlan wanted us to buy them out, we already had a six-year track record, profitable from Day One,” DeJong said. “Jan is very good with numbers and also seeing the big picture.”

Bosma said, “We ended up going with a Twin Cities bank because the banks in Fairmont wanted Arlan to continue being a partner. Even though never involved in the day-to-day operations, he was our money guy. Because of his financial backing, we had been able to grow the business. It takes a lot of cash for what we do. We have a substantial line of credit.”

The company offers a variety of transportation-related services, with Bosma in charge of credit and sales, and DeJong as chief financial officer.

“We both wear many different hats throughout the day,” DeJong said. “When we started it was just Jan, me and one part-time employee. The majority of the work was licensing and permitting and the fuel tax. We’ve grown the licensing and permitting, but the factoring has grown much faster. When we started, our goal was to factor 100 trucks. We now factor more than 1,200. We specialize in dealing with and helping smaller trucking companies, those with five to 10 trucks.”

Bosma added, “Very few people know what factoring is. It’s a lot more complicated and more risk than people think. The legality of owning and operating a factoring company is complex. There are various legal areas that must be complied with internally before we can do business with a trucking company and consider them a factoring client.”

Although Bosma prefers to do business with a gentlemen’s handshake, experience has taught him that the paper trail at which DeJong excels is the backbone of the factoring service.

“We started in the five-state area of Minnesota, South Dakota, North Dakota, Wisconsin and Iowa,” Bosma said. “And expansion brought some dishonest clients.”

Bosma and DeJong belong to the International Factoring Association, which provides conferences, a publication and advice for members. Neither partner is involved in political, business or community organizations. Their business’ promotion and growth has come through word-of-mouth and responses to brochures mailed to trucking companies in the 48 contiguous states. A Fargo, N. Dak., company provides Great Plains with marketing contacts, and produces and mails out marketing brochures.

“We still have the original brochure we sent out, although the current one is entirely different,” DeJong said.

A Fairmont company recently designed a sign for the Great Plains office entry. Visually representative of the company name, the logo brings to mind images of the American West. The Dutch windmill has not been phased out, however, as it still appears on business cards and information sheets.

 

While the partners’ long-term goal has remained the same—to provide quality service to clients at a reasonable cost—they recently readjusted their economic plan.

“Before the economic downturn, our five-year goal was to have 20 to 25 employees and serve about 2,500 trucking companies,” DeJong said. “As soon as consumer confidence returns, it will be possible to resume growing the business because everything people have is hauled on a truck at some time.”

It’s not the first time Bosma and DeJong have faced a loss of customers. Looking back to 2001, DeJong said, “After 9/11, we lost 25 percent of our business, but in the next 13 months we regained that and more. We had huge growth in 2002, and 2008 was the year of our greatest growth. Now, small companies are hardest hit, with minimal freight moving and higher fuel costs. Our recent loss has been comparable to that of late 2001, but we believe the recovery will take longer. We have adjusted our five-year plan to accommodate a recovery period of 24 months.”

Even with the loss of business, no employees were laid off and no one’s hours were cut, although employees who left their positions were not replaced.

“Our employees are extremely important to our success,” DeJong said. “When you deal with trucking, you know it’s a very, very hard life. Jan and I are very hands-on. We stress customer service. There’s a lot of competition now, but the economy will weed out those that don’t know what they’re doing. We don’t even have voice mail. When people call, they always talk to a real person. And they’ll probably talk with the same person every time. It’s a personal business. We believe that when our clients call, they want real answers right away. When people call in–at a scale with a permit problem, or they have a cash problem–they need to have it resolved quickly and by someone who understands the situation. Some of our employees have trucking backgrounds like Jan and I, and know they have to care about our clients. Our staff is fantastic.”

Bosma and DeJong believe they are well positioned against the competition.

Their business philosophy is explained in a promotional flyer: By asking yourself the following questions, you can determine if factoring is for you. Do you foresee your transportation company experiencing cash flow problems from time to time? Will your trucking company continually have the available cash to deal with day-to-day problems, such as truck maintenance, employee payroll and fuel? If the answer to either of these questions troubles you, why not consider using the cash being tied up in your invoices? You send your invoices to Great Plains, we process them and pay you, usually within 24 hours. Our rates are based on your company’s revenue and average day pay. Some factoring companies lead trucking companies on by quoting low fees for invoices paid in a short time. Then, as the invoice remains unpaid, the fees continually rise. That is not how Great Plains does business. We quote one low, fixed fee on all invoices.

 

The next chapter of the Bosma-DeJong entrepreneurial story began in October 2006, when they formed Partners Funding Inc., another factoring company. This one specializes in non-trucking small business receivables. It provides recourse factoring for small businesses that provide a product or service to other small businesses.

Bosma explained how recourse factoring works. “Our clients send us the invoices with the bill of lading, and we advance monies on the invoices within 24 hours,” he said. “We send the invoices out to their customers and wait to be paid. If Great Plains or Partners Funding is not paid within 90 days of the purchase of the invoice, our client is responsible for re-payment of the invoice to Great Plains or Partners Funding. This happens only a small percentage of the time. Because of this arrangement, we always encourage clients to make sure they are dealing with credit-worthy businesses, and if they have questions, we will do a credit check on their potential customer.”

DeJong said, “We started Partners Funding to help others.” The service, which now has 20 clients, fills a need not only for funding, but also for business guidance.

“It’s amazing when Sherri and I talk with business people how many of them don’t get the business part, like knowing their costs,” Bosma said. “And they don’t have written goals and a plan that they will work, making adjustments along the way,” DeJong said.

Bosma said, “You’ve got to have an idea and a plan, work hard, be honest, have a lot of common sense, hire people who are smarter than you are, have good employees and treat them well. Sherri and I have done this.”

Another Bosma-DeJong business venture is the ownership of the office complex housing Great Plains Transportation Services, Inc., Partners Funding, Inc., VTS, and four unrelated businesses. The Arthur Andrews Office Park, named for the two partners’ fathers, is at 923 North State Street in Fairmont. They’ve owned the building for five years and rent office space to other professional companies.

Although Bosma and DeJong no longer work 50-60 hours a week, the memory of their start-up remains. DeJong said, “It wasn’t so easy 14 years ago. We’ve worked very, very hard, and had help along the way. We are still very involved and will continue to be, but we now can spend more time with our families.”

Bosma added, “We’ve been very blessed by the success. Both Sherri and I thank God. He gets credit for the majority of this, then our employees, and then us.” 

 

Everything Doers

Great Plains Transportation Services, Inc. is a one-stop shop for trucking company legal requirements, turning invoices into cash and saving money on fuel.

It provides recourse factoring services for trucking companies by advancing them money on the trucking company’s receivables. Instead of the trucking company sending invoices to its customers and waiting 30-40 days to get paid, the trucking company sends its invoices to Great Plains, which advances money on the invoices to the trucking company within 24 hours. Great Plains then sends invoices out to the trucking company’s customers and waits to get paid by them. It has a collections department to follow up on invoices purchased.

The Authority Department assists clients with federal and state operating authority, federal tax filing, fuel tax reporting, property tax filing, prorate registration and renewal, titling, unified carrier registration and meeting U.S. Department of Transportation requirements.

Great Plains also offers its clients the EFS fuel card program, which gives truckers fuel cost discounts and ease of payment. Partner’s Funding provides recourse factoring services for small businesses.

Who’s Who?

Where did you grow up? Oldest, youngest or middle child?
Bosma: In Sibley, Iowa, a middle child. I now live in Fairmont and Prior Lake.
DeJong: The youngest of four, originally from the Carroll, Iowa, area. We moved to New Ulm when I was 10, then to Fairmont.

Favorite subjects in school? Least favorite?
Bosma: My favorites were math and science; I was good at them. I disliked history because I didn’t think it pertained to me.
DeJong: I was a nerd. I liked school.

What did you want to become in junior high?
Bosma: A pharmacist.
DeJong: A lawyer.

What kind of preparation/education did you receive for this business?
Bosma: Fifteen years working for the VanWyks and other trucking companies.
DeJong: I was a legal secretary and legal assistant and then went on to licensing and permitting work. I was self-taught; I read the book.

What would you like to have studied or done differently?
Bosma: I would have gone to college, probably for a business degree.
DeJong: I wanted it all—a good career and a family, to be a good mom. I have that. I think I’ve done a good job.

What was your first job?
Bosma: A paper route taught me responsibility. I also baled hay, picked rocks, mowed lawn and shoveled snow so I could buy a 1965 Pontiac LeMans when I turned 16.
DeJong: Babysitting, working for my dad as a teenager and for various businesses. I always had a job and my own spending money. Then I went to work for a law firm in Iowa as a legal secretary.

Tell about your family.
Bosma: Dad was from the Netherlands, Mom from Iowa. I have two daughters: Stacey, 31, an OB nurse, and Mindy, 29, executive analyst for a financial planner.
DeJong: Ashley attends South Dakota State University; Joshua is a high school sophomore.

What are your hobbies?
Bosma: Hobbies are riding my Harley and Pro-Street, golf and boating.
DeJong: I read anything, I swim and am very involved in my daughter’s and son’s interests.

Of what accomplishment are you most proud?
Bosma: I raised two God-fearing kids, with the help of their mother.
DeJong: Being a mom. I’m a good mom. I like my kids.

What possession do you value most?
Bosma: The businesses and my 2002 Harley Fat Boy. I wish I still had the ‘65 Pontiac LeMans.
DeJong: (None.) I just consider my life, God, family, and business.

What three words describe your business partner?
Bosma: Sherri is a friend, a great mother and very competent.
DeJong: Jan is a visionary, dedicated and a good advisor.

If you weren’t doing this, what would you be doing?
Bosma: I would love to test drive new cars for car magazines, but I’m very happy. I like what I do.
DeJong: I probably would be doing legal research.