LT-manager: How did you come up with the name Trans Service Team? Normally we tend to talk about Spedition Meier or Meier Logistik ...
Frank Schmidt: I grew up with my parents' business, my father was just a haulier. I had always scratched at the door and always had my own ideas, but my older brothers were set as managers, so I didn't get away with it. That led me to start my own business in 1990. I wanted to drive around in my own truck, enjoy time and peace and quiet. That worked until 1994, but I had no ambitions to grow until then. Then the opportunity arose to take on a big job. And so I sat on the couch - which still exists today - and came up with a name for the company - Trans Service Team: Transporting with Service in a Team, the name was found, quite simply.

LTM : The founder's couch is still there?
Schmidt: Yes, it's now in one of the conference rooms. (laughs)

LTM : Driving and having fun were the main priorities?
Schmidt: Yes, when I was sitting in the truck, I certainly wasn't thinking about the company with 3,000 employees that it would one day become. You could have more fun driving back then. I still have diesel in my blood today, even though I haven't driven myself since 1996. I can still do it. Today I drive a large motorhome, that's enough (laughs). I have a family and enjoy every minute with them.

LTM : In an interview, you were quoted as saying, "You're going to look around" when you talked about your separation from your parents' business. What is behind this?
Schmidt: When you grow up in a large family and are one of the youngest of six children, you have a certain need for recognition. People used to place bets on how long I would be able to maintain my independence - that spurred me on.

LTM : They were betting on when you would come to your senses?
Schmidt: Yes, you could call it that, and it was also a message to my parents. For my father, my path to self-employment was the outburst of one of his youngest children, a scandal. At that time, it was not even foreseeable that the company would become so big. But we are still growing year on year.

LTM : Did you ever make up again?
Schmidt: We did. My father even managed to put his hand on my shoulder once and say that he was proud of me. That wasn't easy for him. He will be 88 years old this year and now lives right next door to me. I support my parents, although they put big obstacles in my way at the beginning. From their point of view, I was the "black sheep", but I was unstoppable.

LTM : Over the years, you have integrated numerous family members, including your siblings, into the company. How did this come about?
Schmidt: I think I am one of the driving forces behind TST, a driver of innovation. Around 1995, I realized that it could be difficult in the transport sector, we were too dependent on pure transport, so we had to become more independent. That's why we focused on logistics. However, pushing pallets from left to right was not enough for me. So I delved deeper into the material flow and looked at the processes of my first customer. My suggestions were listened to and went down like a bomb. I was allowed to analyze all the plants and adapt the processes. We needed proper warehouses for the step into production-related logistics. And so, in 1996, TST invested the first three million marks in a forwarding facility. This continued in 1998 and we then bought a really large logistics facility because we had the corresponding orders. In 2000, my father had to give up his business because he had concentrated too much on general cargo transportation. I then took over the company and secured all the jobs. The foundations for expansion were laid.

LTM : Do you have to manage a company in which many positions are held by family members differently?
Schmidt: You have to manage a family business very sensitively and make sure that each family member has their own area of responsibility. That way, everyone can develop in the area for which they are responsible and is highly motivated. Ultimately, it's about everyone pulling together and working in the same direction. You won't get far with self-absorbed egoists in the company. Every individual needs to be picked up. And don't think that integration was as easy as it sounds here ...

LTM : Wasn't she?
Schmidt: When you bring your older brothers into the company, they first have to convince you with performance. And talent. Fortunately, I was born with that.

LTM : Do you make a distinction between family members and "normal" employees?
Schmidt: You can't give a blanket answer to that; it's important to pick everyone up and take them along on the journey. But of course it's a sensitive issue and you have to approach it with sensitivity. At TST, we focus on sustainability and trust. I'm not one of those people who would just throw employees out on the street. A lot has to happen!

LTM : How do you moderate conflicts?
Schmidt: We often hold family councils on major issues, and then my wife and I make the final decision. We treat each other with great respect.

LTM : What about the next, third generation? Are they already in the company?
Schmidt: My siblings' children are already in the company. My older daughter will be joining the company in two years' time and will take over in the future. I think the younger one will also follow. Many entrepreneurs take care of the succession too late, I prefer to start early. You mustn't forget that the company doesn't just consist of me. We are currently building up a ring of managers who surround and advise the family members and who also remain in the company. You need a team.

LTM : Are mafia jokes still allowed at TST? I just can't get rid of the idea (smiles).
Schmidt: You hear that from our customers from time to time (laughs). I keep getting offers to go on talk shows with my story. But I don't want that. We're not a mafia and we're not self-promoters. We are an independent, healthy, medium-sized family business. And although we work closely with family members throughout the day, we high-five each other when we see each other in the evening. Discussions or arguments are rare.

LTM : Do you agree that pure transportation is something that everyone can now do and is still "music" in the services?
Schmidt: That is still true. Back in 1996, we immersed ourselves so deeply in our customers' processes that we were able to influence and optimize the material flow in a production facility. Today, everyone is talking about Industry 4.0 and perfect solutions. They don't exist. There are only intelligent logistics solutions that work in combination with robots and people. When it comes to the human-machine interface, I am confident that we are certainly one of the biggest innovators among logistics service providers. We are known and highly valued by our customers for our very innovative solutions and ideas.

LTM : Can you give some examples?
Schmidt: We not only produced components for a large Japanese company, whose name I am not allowed to mention, but also helped to design the robot technology. In general, we are so deeply involved in material flows that we even hold patents for certain developments. However, it is a long and long way before customers trust a logistics service provider to that extent.

LTM : Are the sophisticated logistics and material flow concepts that you develop for customers more lucrative? Why do you go to the trouble of building up so much expertise in this area?
Schmidt: Yes, you see, we have an equity ratio of 60 percent and, with a few exceptions, we finance ourselves completely, so we are independent of banks. There is no 100 percent solution in logistics, but you can only earn some money with intelligent solutions. Everything around us is logistics, but it's all about getting it right. We used to share the benefits of an improved material flow with customers. Today, we are so fully booked that we only have limited resources available for complex requests in the near future. We need to hire 800 employees over the next two years, but of course it will take time for us to get them all on board.

LTM : In many projects, what puts you in a position to assess the material flow better than the customer?
Schmidt: I can't do it better than the company, but perhaps in many cases differently and often better than the competitors who are also bidding for the project.

LTM: 3,000 employees, 300 million turnover, family pacified - what now?
Schmidt: I'll start with the company, that comes first. I would like to place the company on even more different pillars and develop TST into a brand. We want to expand the service portfolio, but only at reasonable margins. We won't do it for one or two percent. What's the point of growth if the bottom line is nothing?

LTM : And personally?
Schmidt: I would like to have more peace and quiet for myself from time to time. Having free time is not so unpleasant (laughs). Taking more vacations, travelling in my motorhome and most importantly: more time for my family! I also want to integrate my children into the company, that's also important to me. But selling the company? That doesn't interest me, I regularly turn down offers like that.

LTM : What do you like best about your job?
Schmidt: Having ideas and being able to implement them. I have nine assistants around me, they have enough to do (laughs).

LTM: Thank you very much for the interview.

The interview with Frank Schmidt was conducted by Marvin Meyke and Martin Schrüfer. They met the logistics expert at the ISArBAR in the Sofitel Munich Bayerpost hotel - we would like to thank them for their friendly support on site.

Entrepreneur, doer, family man: the story of Frank Schmidt

From truck driver with one truck to company boss with more than 3,000 employees: Within three decades, Frank Schmidt, a native of the Rhine region, has built up a logistics company that is now one of the leading service providers for industrial and manufacturing logistics in Germany. It is a story of courageous, uncomfortable paths: instead of joining his father's haulage company, Schmidt founded his own company in 1990, aged just 23, and borrowed 180,000 marks from the bank to buy his first vehicle. Just three years later, he moved into his first logistics center and became a service provider for one of Germany's leading cosmetics and detergent manufacturers. When his father's haulage company closed in 2001, he took over the company and hired all the employees and his siblings. With 38 family members now working for Trans Service Team, the Worms-based logistics specialist is a genuine family business. Today, the 52-year-old and his wife Melanie run a company that operates 73 warehouse and logistics locations worldwide with more than one million square meters of storage space. The father of two daughters is an enthusiastic supporter of the top league team Wormatia Worms.