LeanLogistics had eye on future

The transportation management system software provider had been planning for the next stage of its growth since early 2016 by looking for opportunities to extend the reach and capabilities of its LeanTMS platform.    Transportation management software provider LeanLogistics began thinking about the next stage of its evolution at the start of 2016, Chief Commercial Officer Chris Timmer said in a conversation with American Shipper Wednesday.
   That planning included discussions with LeanLogistics’ parent, Australia-based holding company Brambles, about how and where to invest in the company. And also whether Brambles was the one to keep fostering the company’s growth.
   It culminated in the announcement Tuesday that Brambles was selling LeanLogistics to Francisco Partners, the owners of fellow supply chain software provider Kewill, for $115 million.
   “It’s the right move for the business and something we drove,” said Timmer. “Brambles has been a great parent company for eight years.”
   He said the company had been growing well organically but that “inorganic growth was the challenge.” After discussions with Brambles, they jointly sought opportunities and found a good fit with Francisco and Kewill.
   Timmer lauded Brambles Chief Executive Tom Gorman for flying from Australia to LeanLogistics’ headquarters in Holland, Mich. to talk directly employees about the next step for the company.
   He also emphasized that the LeanLogistics platform and its products would be supported for existing and future customers.
   “Lean is a platform that will be supported going forward,” he said. “We will continue to add capabilities. The roadmap hasn’t changed. As an application, as a platform, as a whole, it will remain. Our focus is for there to be no interruption for our customers and to find ways to add value.”
   Kewill and LeanLogistics executives will work out how the LeanLogistics products will fit into the broader Kewill platform going forward, including whether the LeanLogistics brand will remain.
   “Our objective is to move quickly, not to go dark for 12 to 24 months and miss opportunities,” he said. “Those plans will be revealed in a quick manner.”
   Timmer said being part of Kewill will accelerate LeanLogistics’ ongoing development of parcel and rail extensions to its flagship LeanTMS product, and would add robustness to its existing ocean planning and execution capabilities. The deal also gives LeanLogistics significant reach in Europe, where Kewill has an established customer base.