What Tropical Shipping does

Tropical Shipping is a privately held, US-based ocean and multimodal freight carrier that specializes in cargo transportation between the continental United States and Canada and the Caribbean and Bahamas. Founded in 1963 and headquartered in Riviera Beach, Florida, the company operates a network of receiving facilities in Miami, West Palm Beach, Houston, New Jersey, Puerto Rico, and Canada (Halifax, Toronto, Montreal), connecting to more than 25 destination ports across 30+ countries including the Bahamas, the Greater and Lesser Antilles, and the northern coast of South America. Its wholly-owned operating subsidiaries in St. Lucia, St. Maarten, and St. Barths anchor its island-level presence.

The company's service portfolio spans the full freight lifecycle: Less than Container Load (LCL) consolidation via its TropBox product, Full Container Load (FCL), refrigerated transport, vehicle shipping, project and oversized cargo handling, inland trucking, marine cargo insurance through Seven Seas Insurance Co., and a complementary air freight service (Trop Air). Its eServices platform provides online booking, payment, rate search, tracking, and documentation management, with multi-language support (English, Spanish, French) for self-service customers. Pricing is transaction-based per shipment with usage-based insurance premiums on declared cargo value, augmented by various accessorial surcharges filed as tariff rules with the Federal Maritime Commission and Surface Transportation Board.

Tropical generates revenue primarily through ocean freight transportation supplemented by inland transport, marine insurance premiums, and accessorial fees. Its go-to-market is sales-led through dedicated offices and receiving facilities in the US and Canada, paired with self-service digital channels for shippers. The company serves a horizontal mix of Caribbean and Bahamas importers and exporters, individual consumers and expatriates relocating to island residences, government and disaster relief organizations, and project cargo customers. A wholly-owned subsidiary of Saltchuk, a diversified maritime and logistics conglomerate, Tropical is led by President and CEO Tim Martin and is distinguished by its disaster preparedness partnerships and community integration across the Caribbean.

Name

Tropical Shipping

Legal name

Tropical Shipping and Construction Co. Ltd.

Website

https://tropical.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1963

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Tropical Shipping is a privately held US-based ocean and multimodal freight carrier that transports cargo between the United States/Canada and 30+ Caribbean and Bahamas destinations, offering LCL, FCL, refrigerated, vehicle, project cargo, inland transport, and air freight services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Ocean Freight Shipping and Caribbean Logistics Services

NAICS

Deep Sea Freight Transportation (483111), Water Transportation (483), Marine Cargo Handling (48832)

SIC

Deep Sea Foreign Transportation Of Freight (4412), Arrangement Of Transportation Of Freight & Cargo (4731)

akta.pro primary industry

FCL (Full Container Load) Ocean Forwarding (TLACABAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

LCL (Less-than-Container Load) Consolidation/Deconsolidation (TLACABAB), Refrigerated Ocean Shipping (Reefer Containers & Specialized Reefer Vessels) (TLADAHAD)

Keywords

• Ocean freight shipping
• Less than container load
• Full container load
• Caribbean cargo logistics
• Marine cargo insurance

Headquarters

HQ city

Palm Beach

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices13 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Freight Transportation Services: Core revenue from ocean freight transportation of cargo (LCL, FCL, refrigerated, vehicles, project cargo) to/from Caribbean and Bahamas destinations. Charges include base freight plus various surcharges (bunker, security, port, handling, destination charges). Revenue is primarily transaction-based per shipment.
2. Marine Cargo Insurance: Tropical Shipping applies marine cargo insurance coverage to all shipments unless declined. Premium is calculated on invoice value of cargo and itemized on Bills of Lading. Carrier maintains open policy through Seven Seas Insurance Co., Inc.
3. Inland Transportation: Additional revenue from inland trucking and transportation services to/from receiving facilities in US and Canada before ocean transport or after arrival.
4. Accessorial Charges: Various surcharges and fees including detention/demurrage, late gate fees, peak season surcharges, security charges, harbor dues, destination terminal handling charges, and other port-specific fees.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Tropical Shipping operates ocean and air freight transportation of consumer goods, building materials, refrigerated cargo, vehicles, and project cargo between the United States, Canada, and more than 25 Caribbean and Bahamas destinations. Its core offering is scheduled ocean liner shipping with both Less than Container Load (LCL) consolidation and Full Container Load (FCL) services, supported by inland trucking, marine cargo insurance, refrigerated transport, air freight, vehicle shipping, and an eServices self-service online platform for booking, payment, and shipment tracking.

Product overview

Tropical Shipping operates a comprehensive maritime shipping and logistics platform offering a portfolio of services for cargo transportation to and from the Caribbean and Bahamas. The core product offerings include TropBox (small package and LCL shipping) and eServices (online booking and tracking platform), supported by FCL (Full Container Load), LCL (Less than Container Load), and Consolidations services for containerized cargo. Additional logistics services include Inland Transportation, Marine Insurance (through Seven Seas Insurance Co.), Refrigerated transport, Trop Air freight, Project Cargo for oversized shipments, and Vehicle shipping. The company operates a network of receiving facilities in Miami, West Palm Beach, Houston, New Jersey, Puerto Rico, and Canada (Halifax, Toronto, Montreal), with destination ports across the Caribbean, Bahamas, and other island territories.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• TropBox Fast, reliable small package and Less than Container Load (LCL) shipping service for packages and consolidated cargo, for shippers needing smaller consolidated volumes between the US, Canada, and Caribbean/Bahamas destinations.
• Full Container Load (FCL) Full container load ocean shipping service for large volume cargo shipments between US/Canada and Caribbean/Bahamas destinations.
• Less than Container Load (LCL) Consolidation shipping service allowing multiple shippers to share container space for smaller shipments between North America and Caribbean/Bahamas destinations.
• Consolidations Cargo consolidation services combining multiple shipments into single containers to optimize shipping costs on Caribbean/Bahamas trade lanes.
• Inland Transportation Ground transportation services connecting cargo origins and destinations to and from Tropical Shipping's US and Canadian receiving facilities, integrating with ocean transport.
• Marine Insurance Cargo insurance coverage applied to all shipments unless declined, with premiums calculated on invoice value of cargo and itemized on Bills of Lading. Carrier maintains an open policy through Seven Seas Insurance Co., Inc.
• Refrigerated Temperature-controlled ocean shipping services for perishable goods requiring refrigerated transport at specific temperatures.
• Trop Air Air freight services for time-sensitive cargo shipments supporting Tropical Shipping's Caribbean/Bahamas network.
• Project Cargo Specialized handling and transportation for oversized, heavy, or complex cargo requiring custom logistics solutions on Caribbean/Bahamas routes.
• Vehicles Vehicle shipping service for transporting cars and other vehicles between North America and Caribbean/Bahamas destinations.
• eServices Online platform enabling customers to book, pay, and track cargo shipments, view rates, access quick reference guides, and manage shipping documentation for Tropical Shipping.

Quantifiable outcome

• We have a responsibility to ensure that we're on time every time and we deliver as we say we're going to deliver. We're only as successful as our customers are successful.

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Port of Palm BeachcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTropical Shipping is the largest cargo carrier tenant at Port of Palm Beach. The port successfully advocated to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative to mitigate proposed tariffs on companies using Chinese-built ships that threatened tenants including Tropical Shipping.
• Caribbean Emergency Management AgenciescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAnnual collaboration with local community emergency management agencies on disaster preparedness workshops. Focus on building best practices in public-private partnership for disaster recovery.
• Chambers of Commerce and Hotel and Tourism AssociationsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndustry partnerships for hosting disaster management workshops with focus on building resilient recovery processes and relationships in Caribbean and Bahamas communities.
• Seven Seas Insurance Co., Inc.minorOthersCarrier's open policy insurance provider for marine cargo insurance coverage applied to all customer shipments unless declined prior to shipment.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Crowley Maritime: Major US-based maritime logistics company with deep Caribbean and Latin America ocean freight operations, including a long-standing Puerto Rico liner service. Directly comparable as a regional ocean carrier serving the same Caribbean island trade lanes as Tropical.
• TOTE Maritime: US operator of ocean freight services between the Continental US and Puerto Rico, with significant Jones Act exposure. Closely comparable to Tropical's Caribbean ocean freight model and directly competes for Caribbean basin cargo volumes.
• Seaboard Marine: Ocean carrier specializing in trade between the US, Caribbean, and Latin America with container, breakbulk, and project cargo services. Directly comparable regional peer competing for the same Caribbean shipper base.
• King Ocean Services: Regional ocean carrier providing container and breakbulk services between the US East Coast, Caribbean, and South America. Direct peer serving overlapping Caribbean destinations and competing for similar shipper customers.
• Bernuth Logistics: Caribbean-focused ocean freight and logistics provider offering LCL/FCL services to Caribbean and Central/South American destinations. Operates in the same niche with similar customer profile to Tropical.
• ZIM Integrated Shipping Services: Global container shipping line with significant Caribbean trade exposure, particularly to Caribbean island nations. Comparable as a container ocean carrier serving overlapping Caribbean import lanes.

Broad incumbents

• CMA CGM: One of the world's largest ocean carriers offering extensive Caribbean service as part of its global network. Comparable as a broad incumbent with overlapping container services to Caribbean destinations.
• Maersk: Largest global ocean container carrier with broad Caribbean coverage through its network and Sealand brand. Comparable as a broad incumbent serving similar shipper customers with significantly larger scale.
• MSC (Mediterranean Shipping Company): Global ocean carrier with Caribbean trade routes serving multiple island destinations. Comparable as a broad incumbent offering overlapping FCL services across the Caribbean basin.

Others

• Saltchuk (parent): Diversified maritime and logistics conglomerate that owns Tropical Shipping alongside other shipping, aviation, and energy distribution businesses. Comparable as the corporate parent and ecosystem peer sharing strategic and capital resources with Tropical.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/TropicalShippin

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Subsidiaries3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Tropical Shipping