The Road to Success
Growing up, Doug Bowen’s father had a trucking company and spent 65 years transporting goods on the interstate. When deciding on a career path, Doug’s logical choice was logistics.
Stepping into a role with the family business brought its share of challenges. As with any generational enterprise, he had big shoes to fill.
By 19, Doug founded Doug’s Produce, and by 21, he obtained his CDL and began life on the road.
Build It and They Will Come
Doug spent a lot of time loading and unloading at facilities during his tenure as a truck driver. While waiting, he daydreamed about a more efficient way to do things.
“The ‘what if’ led to a couple of questions with producers and manufacturers that we were hauling for,” Doug said. “We referenced the Kevin Costner movie Field of Dreams a lot in our four-year journey of trying to get this thing funded: If you build it, they will come.”
Compass Cold Storage innovated on a key part of the logistics chain: freeze and store products before they get to the end consumer. Doug noticed over time that the cold storage facilities he delivered to were using the same technology he saw when visiting those facilities as a kid with his dad.
Currently, there are only a few companies in the world that build cold storage facilities like Compass Cold Storage. “Part of the reason why we partnered with Ti Cold was the blast freeze technology that they bring to the table,” Doug said. As pioneers in the cold storage industry, Ti Cold played a crucial role in bringing Doug’s dream to life.
Compass Cold Storage can freeze products through blast freezing technology in half the time traditional systems require. The product also freezes more evenly and consistently due to the air circulation.
“What the customers like to hear is that the 50-plus hour timer they’re used to seeing can now be cut down to about 24 hours or less for poultry. That technology being in this area has been huge,” Doug said.
After freezing the product, they store it on 60-foot-tall shelves where it is labeled and ready when the customer needs it. Doug also takes pride in the facility’s minimal dwell times because he understands what it’s like to be the truck driver that comes to facilities like his.
Along with being situated in an ideal location, Doug believes partnering with a hometown lender like Farm Credit of Western Arkansas is crucial for business success.
This article was originally published by Farm Credit of Western Arkansas.
