Melissa Priest is the Founder and CEO of Alexandretta Transportation Consulting, the only female-owned transportation consulting firm in the U.S. She is a recognized subject matter expert parcel shipping and global leader in parcel, trucking, ocean and air freight consulting and has saved clients over $1billion dollars since starting in the parcel industry nearly 25 years ago.
She is passionate about moving businesses forward by increasing their profits and competitive leverage
Melissa started her career at FedEx and transitioned into consulting 17 years ago. She works with clients ranging from start-up ecommerce firms to Fortune 50 companies, to provide savings on existing parcel, ocean, air and trucking agreements, as well as other solutions.
She is absolutely passionate about empowering women and is a co-author of the book: Women In Business: Breaking Through.
Melissa is a graduate of California State University, Fullerton with a B.A. with a degree in International Business and finished her studies in France at the University of Paris, Creteil.
Alexandretta Transportation Consulting brings average savings of 10% – 20% to its clients by identifying areas of improvement within existing carrier agreements, then works with the individual client to re-negotiate the agreement to capture the savings.
It is a diverse business with offices in the U.S, Europe and China. In addition to championing equality and diversity, the company gives back to the global community by donating 1% of its profits to humanitarian and environmental causes.
Connect with Melissa on LinkedIn.
Transcript
Intro: [00:00:04] Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX studios in Atlanta, Georgia, it’s time for GWBC Radio’s Open for Business. Now, here’s your host.
Lee Kantor: [00:00:18] Lee Kantor here. Another episode of GWBC Open for Business. And this is going to be a good one. Today, we have with us Melissa Priest with Alexandretta Transportation Consulting. Welcome, Melissa.
Melissa Priest: [00:00:28] Thank you so much for having me.
Lee Kantor: [00:00:29] Well, before we get to things, tell us about your work. How are you serving in and what do you do?
Melissa Priest: [00:00:34] Well, we’re actually a consulting firm. So, I know a lot of folks are like, “What is transportation consulting?” And what it really means is that corporations spending anywhere from a million dollars a year on UPS, or FedEx, or trucking, all the way up to close to a billion dollars or even more, they look to us to hire us to look for improvements in their existing contracts and implement savings there.
Lee Kantor: [00:00:58] So, now, how did you get into this line of work? It’s a predominantly male industry, isn’t it, the transportation industry?
Melissa Priest: [00:01:03] Very much so, yes. Oh, my goodness, yes. I actually started back in 1997 working for FedEx, selling personal services. And then, after about a decade there, I really just felt it was time to shift and be more on the clients and shippers side of things. So, I made the leap to consulting. Gosh, I think it’s about 16 years ago now.
Lee Kantor: [00:01:28] So, then, what was that shift like as an entrepreneur going from a big corporate entity that has probably a lot of bureaucracy to a more nimble organization that you’re kind of calling the shots?
Melissa Priest: [00:01:40] Well, I did work for another company in between. So, I wasn’t necessarily calling the shots early on. But certainly, going from a large corporation to a very, very small firm, it’s a shock to the system a little bit. I mean, if you work for FedEx or UPS, certainly, just about any business in the world is going to welcome you in. And as a very small representative for a very small company, it takes a little bit more work and effort. But at least, having the skills of one of the largest corporations in the world gave me the skills that I needed to be able to make that pivot.
Lee Kantor: [00:02:18] So, now, when you were going to market as a female-owned transportation company, what were some of the challenges that you had to overcome in order to give the folks confidence that you’d be able to do what you’re promising that you’re going to be able to do?
Melissa Priest: [00:02:34] There’s a leap of faith in this industry a little bit where folks really have to buy into the fact that even if they have a room full of experts and specialists that you’re going to be able to still come in and provide value. I’ve certainly had experiences in the past with people talking to me saying, “Honey, I’ve been doing this longer than you’ve been alive,” or assuming I’m a form taker or something like that. So, it just takes a lot of persistence to be looked at, and taken seriously, I would say.
Lee Kantor: [00:03:09] Now, how important was kind of becoming a certified woman-owned business in the growth of your organization?
Melissa Priest: [00:03:17] We knew about certification ahead of time. So, we became certified right away. And there’s just tremendous benefit to it. There’s a lot of training courses, everything from how to market your business, to how to do finances, and everything in between. And the fact that there’s a portal that allows you to find diversity contacts within large corporations who can be an advocate for you in getting hired is a tremendous resource. So, I think it’s really important and something that all female-owned businesses should take advantage of.
Lee Kantor: [00:03:56] Now, for you, in the growth of your company, how did you find kind of mentors and folks that can help lead the way or maybe educate you on things that you didn’t know when you were getting started?
Melissa Priest: [00:04:10] The WBE group, the Women’s Business Enterprise, WBENC, I’m certified on the West Coast through WBENC West. But certainly, there’s resources in there. And then, women that I’ve met along the way, the few of us, you’re easy to spot in the crowd in the transportation industry. So, certainly, we’ve engaged with each other over the years and helped each other along. And that continues to this day.
Lee Kantor: [00:04:38] Now, as you grow your business, how important is kind of empowering other women in business and kind of helping them get going, so maybe they don’t have to go through what you went through?
Melissa Priest: [00:04:50] Hugely, hugely important to me. It’s definitely something that’s a focus for me personally. I have two daughters and, certainly, would love to see their generation not have to leap over a lot of the hurdles that we did. And there are so many resources nowadays. I mean, anything that I can do to help pull someone along, so that it’s not so much of a struggle and, sometimes, an uphill battle is something that I want to be able to help other women do.
Lee Kantor: [00:05:25] Now, what has been the most rewarding part of the journey thus far?
Melissa Priest: [00:05:30] From women helping women aspect or just having my own business?
Lee Kantor: [00:05:33] Just overall. Just being an entrepreneur, and surviving the pandemic, and just dealing with what you’re dealing with on the day-to-day basis?
Melissa Priest: [00:05:41] I mean, I love it. I mean, I do feel like even when I was little, I wanted to have a business. So, I do feel like I got the entrepreneurship gene. So, it’s just a joy to be able to steer the business in the direction that I want to steer it, to be able to work with the incredible team that I’ve assembled here at Alexandretta and to exceed client expectations. I mean, just the cool aspect of owning the business and directing it is hugely satisfying.
Melissa Priest: [00:06:15] And I would also say, Alexandretta Transportation Consulting is the first and only female-owned transportation consulting business in the US. And it was important to me to kind of stick that flag and put it down, hopefully, to encourage other women to to follow either in this space or in other places within the transportation logistics industry where or maybe there hasn’t been a presence before.
Lee Kantor: [00:06:43] Now, can you explain why that’s so important for women or just anybody really to get involved in the logistics supply chain? That’s a field that I think is kind of has a lot of misunderstanding around it. It’s not kind of your grandfather’s supply chain and logistics world that we live in today.
Melissa Priest: [00:07:02] It’s not.
Lee Kantor: [00:07:02] Whereas, maybe a one time, it mattered that you were a big, strong person to lift heavy things, that right now, there might be some of that but a lot of that is automated. There’s a lot of robotics. There’s a lot of kind of brainpower required to get things done and move things from point A to point B.
Melissa Priest: [00:07:21] There is. I mean, as we’ve shifted to a global economy over the last several decades, it’s become an incredibly sophisticated industry. And there’s a lot of analytics in it. There’s a lot of intelligence that goes into it. So, there’s a lot of really exciting and very complex problems to solve and solutions to be found and implemented. And I think those are attractive positions for anybody who’s looking for that type of mental stimulation. There’s a lot of that in the transportation industry now. And I think, there’s plenty of women that, really, would be interested in it and are very well suited towards it.
Melissa Priest: [00:08:07] And it’s also become a lot more important to the C suite that supply chain is incredibly important to the profitability, and the success, and livelihood of most organizations, anybody who’s shipping anything. And the C suite has really realized that and it is starting to really escalate supply chain positions into positions with more visibility as it is rightfully so. So, I mean, there’s so much opportunity there and so many different areas where women can plug in. It’s incredible.
Lee Kantor: [00:08:42] Right. And I don’t want a young woman to kind of self-select out before they really educate themselves on all the opportunities. I don’t want them to picture in their head something from 20 years ago that really isn’t the reality today.
Melissa Priest: [00:08:57] Right. And the nice thing is, I mean, there are supply chain degrees now which they weren’t something that existed when I was going to college. And so, I think they can get a lot of information in terms of all the different segments that are out there because, I mean, from transportation itself, to sourcing and procurement, and everything in between, there’s just so many different areas that they can get exposed to or do internships until they find the thing that is specifically lights them up.
Lee Kantor: [00:09:31] Now, can you talk a little bit about kind of being a remote worker? I know that you’ve worked from your home or your office for a while now. And this transition during the pandemic probably wasn’t as drastic for you than it was for other folks.
Melissa Priest: [00:09:31] Right.
Lee Kantor: [00:09:48] Any kind of dos and don’ts for being kind of an effective remote worker when it comes to balancing your home life, your work life, because those things can bleed together pretty easily if you don’t kind of set your own parameters?
Melissa Priest: [00:10:03] They can. I mean, yeah. I mean, the pandemic, I didn’t blink an eyelash since it’s business as usual for us. I mean, I think if someone’s looking to do remote, I’ve heard in the past and I found it to be true, it’s better to either run your business remotely or run your business in person. It’s harder to blend the two together. So, that’s something to keep in mind when starting a business is really what do you want it to look like, at least, for the foreseeable future, so that you can build it.
Melissa Priest: [00:10:35] We have a global business. We’ve got folks all over the globe. And to have team meetings, and to keep everyone motivated, and on the same page, and know what the values and the goals and the mission are are critically important. And doing that looks very different remote versus in person. So, those are things that need to be taken into great consideration, for sure.
Melissa Priest: [00:10:57] I mean, as far as balance, I mean, my youngest is 16 now, just got his driver’s license yesterday. And I’ve been blessed to be able to have had a true career during the time when my kids were growing up. So, it’s enabled me to be present, although they certainly know when not to come into the office or not to interrupt, but you can weave together a really successful work-life balance if you’re lucky enough to work from home on the regular.
Lee Kantor: [00:11:30] Now, if you weren’t doing enough, let’s talk a little bit about the book you’re writing.
Melissa Priest: [00:11:35] Yeah. Actually, it’s a collaboration. There’s 14 women who are writing a book. It’s called Women in Business Breaking Through. And lessons, and stories, and recommendations on what we’ve done and what we learned, so again, we can empower the women coming behind us to do it better, faster or more knowledgeably than we did. So, that’s coming out probably in the next month or so. So, I’ve got a chapter in there on leveling up to unlock success. And that’s a lot about the importance of mindset in success, and just growth visualization, getting coaching, things along those lines, because I think those are very much a strong foundation. You can know everything you need to about your industry or accounting practices, but if you don’t have your mindset right, success can be a struggle.
Lee Kantor: [00:12:33] Now, do you mind sharing a little bit along those lines on maybe some tips or advice for a woman that is struggling with their mindset? What are some kind of things they can be doing to really take their kind of thinking to the next level?
Melissa Priest: [00:12:48] Well, there’s certainly, probably, three. I mean, there’s great books and resources out there that they can read to be able to talk about books on mindset, and growth mindset, and positivity and things of that nature. There’s also a ton of women’s groups out there now for female entrepreneurs to support each other. And those groups have got different … some of them are Fortune 500 C-level folks. Some of them are brand new entrepreneurs. Some of them are more Etsy-based. I mean, there’s something out there for everyone. So, certainly, finding like-minded folks to communicate with is huge. And then, there’s always coaching. So, certainly, coaches can assist you both with things that you know that maybe you’re struggling with, but they can also point out blindspots as well, and that can create breakthroughs. So, there’s a lot of ways to do it.
Lee Kantor: [00:13:46] Now, for you, what do you need more of? How can we help you?
Melissa Priest: [00:13:50] Oh, my goodness. I am I am looking to connect with more female CEOs and COOs this year. We work with small internet retailers all the way up to the Fortune 500, but I would love to be a resource for more female decision makers in the space, let them know that we’re out here, so that we can do that empowerment thing that we’re talking about here. If I can make them more profitable and their businesses more successful, that’s the 2021 would be a great year.
Lee Kantor: [00:14:25] And it’s I think a win-win-win all the way around.
Melissa Priest: [00:14:28] Absolutely.
Lee Kantor: [00:14:29] So, if somebody wanted to learn more about Alexandretta Transportation Consulting, have a more substantive conversation with you or somebody on your team, what’s the website or best way to get a hold of you?
Melissa Priest: [00:14:37] They can reach us at melissa.priest@alexandrettaconsulting.com. and Alexandretta Consulting is our website, so they can find us there as well.
Lee Kantor: [00:14:47] Well, Melissa, thank you so much for sharing your story today. You’re doing important work, and we appreciate you.
Melissa Priest: [00:14:52] Thanks so much, Lee. I appreciate you having me on. Take care. Happy holidays.
Lee Kantor: [00:14:55] All right. This is Lee Kantor. We will see you all next time on GWBC Open for Business.
About GWBC
The Greater Women’s Business Council (GWBC®) is at the forefront of redefining women business enterprises (WBEs). An increasing focus on supplier diversity means major corporations are viewing our WBEs as innovative, flexible and competitive solutions. The number of women-owned businesses is rising to reflect an increasingly diverse consumer base of women making a majority of buying decision for herself, her family and her business. 
GWBC® has partnered with dozens of major companies who are committed to providing a sustainable foundation through our guiding principles to bring education, training and the standardization of national certification to women businesses in Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina.
