CRST International, a pioneer in the American trucking industry, has transported goods throughout the United States for over 50 years. With more than 5,000 employees, CRST has grown considerably since its early days headquartered in an Iowan chicken coop. Founded by Herald Smith Jr. in 1955, CRST initially filled empty livestock rigs with steel shipments from Chicago to Cedar Rapids. Through adroit acquisitions, the company rapidly expanded its collection of franchises. It is now the leading trucking company in Iowa and one ...
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CRST International, a pioneer in the American trucking industry, has transported goods throughout the United States for over 50 years. With more than 5,000 employees, CRST has grown considerably since its early days headquartered in an Iowan chicken coop. Founded by Herald Smith Jr. in 1955, CRST initially filled empty livestock rigs with steel shipments from Chicago to Cedar Rapids. Through adroit acquisitions, the company rapidly expanded its collection of franchises. It is now the leading trucking company in Iowa and one of the largest in the country. CRST is a lesson in the payoffs of calculated risk and the success that a company can attain under creative leadership. Whether challenged by competitors, the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC), or by market fluctuations, CRST has maintained the entrepreneurial drive necessary to succeed. CRST has taken on struggling franchises, turning them into successful enterprises. It has experienced near-violent confrontation, such as the Teamster Union strike of 1971, surviving to become an even more improved company. When governmental deregulation hit the trucking industry in 1980, CRST increased its revenues by 25 percent despite the overwhelming challenge. Shortly thereafter it became only the third carrier in the history of the United States to receive nationwide transportation authority. Renowned for its safety record and the quality of its drivers, CRST has acquired a reputation for security and reliability. Under the current leadership of Herald Smith's son, John, CRST has continued to grow and earn accolades within the industry. In it for the Long Haul: The Story of CRST is a journey through half a century of American trucking and atestament to the ingenuity, drive, and determination of the CRST team.
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