A group of Landstar independent agents who spend time and money to host an annual business capacity owner (BCO) safety meeting in Flint, Michigan, say the real value is in face-to-face interactions and the opportunity to develop or deepen existing relationships within the Landstar network.  

“I don’t know how you put a relationship down in terms of a return on investment (ROI), but it is an investment – for agents and BCOs,” says Landstar Agent Brandon LePior, one of the meeting organizers. 

“You work with BCOs every day and never see them. At events like our safety meetings, you get to meet them, and you come away with a better understanding of what they’re going through,” says another organizer, Landstar Agent Lenny Dembrosky. “They’ve got investments just like agents.” 

As he points out, BCOs are individual business owners driven by the entrepreneurial spirit, just like agents, with varied specialties and situations. “They’re all different – they have different truck payments, their trucks are different ages.”   

As owner-operators, they may have different equipment, skills and experience, and as individuals, they have different priorities. Knowing who is hauling his customers’ freight and who he can count on is important to the operations of Dembrosky’s agency.  

And so it goes for BCOs like Zeke Mladenovik. “Once agents know who you are and know you are on time and responsible, you can help each other out,” says Mladenovik, who has been leased to Landstar for 10 years. 

Dembrosky adds, “You really get to appreciate these guys. And they appreciate us. I have a driver who sends my office breakfast every week. We look out for each other.” He adds, “I’m making money because they are doing something I can’t. We’re all in this together. If they have a hard time, my agency has a hard time.” 

As Landstar Million Mile Safe Driver and Roadstar® Tom Cox puts it, “Agents need BCOs to take the loads so they can make money. BCOs need the agents to get the loads for 'em. You need each other.” 

LePior agrees. “From the technical side, there’s just more visibility with BCOs in our system, and more direct connections,” he says.  

There also are financial and sales considerations when agents and BCOs establish a good rapport. Dembrosky considers the BCOs he works with to be valuable resources. “I know that I can negotiate with BCOs. Before I bid on some lanes, I will call up drivers who know me and ask how much they can run for, and they understand that I have to put in a competitive bid.” 

“People may think agents sit behind a desk, they make a phone call, and that's the only investment they have in a load,” says Cox. “They've got to make that customer happy. And we are part of that.” 

“From the customer’s viewpoint, Landstar’s pricing might be somewhat higher, but our commitment to safety and service is too. This is what we sell,” says LePior. “Landstar BCOs have experience, and they are professionals. They show up on time, clean cut with clean trucks, and they have the proper protective gear with them,” explains LePior, who values BCOs as representatives of his agency and Landstar. 

“If you have the relationships, you can help each other,” adds LePior. “I can help that BCO further his goals, and sometimes, he might help me out.” 

Mladenovik has similar business friendships. “I can say, ‘Hey Brandon, do you have a load?’ or I call just to see how he is, without asking for a load. When I call Brandon, it’s like I’m calling family. I ask if he went fishing,” says Mladenovik. 

Cox, who’s been a Landstar BCO for 32 years, once deadheaded 400 miles to pick up a load for an agent in a bind, then drove 700 miles back home without a load. “I barely broke even, but the thought behind that is that agent doesn't forget it, and when he comes up with that good-paying load, then your name's going to be first on his list,” says Cox. “You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours. That's the way it works.” 

Cox says certain long-term agent relationships might best be described as friendships. “I mean, we call each other up, check on each other now and then. We see how the agent is doing. He'll call us up and say, ‘Hey, I've got a load coming up. What do you think? Would you want to take it?'"  

In both cases, the BCOs and agents agree that their relationships within the Landstar system are worth the investment and continue to pay off year after year. While return on relationship investment — RORI — might not be a true business term, it certainly appears to be good for business.