Millis Transfer

What Millis Transfer does

Millis Transfer is a privately held, family-owned dry van trucking carrier founded in 1936 by brothers Jake and Ray Millis and headquartered in Black River Falls, Wisconsin. The company operates 800+ power units and 2,000+ trailers, providing regional, dedicated, and over-the-road freight transportation services to manufacturing and warehousing customers across the eastern United States — Southeast, Midwest, Northeast, Texas, and New Jersey, all east of the Rockies. Its technology stack consists of standard fleet-management tools: Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) for shipper integration, satellite-based in-cab communications with real-time load tracking, Electronic Logging Devices (ELDs) for compliance, and speed governors tied to safety programs. Driver-facing amenities include Sirius Satellite Radio and flat-screen TVs. The Millis Training Institute (MTI), established in 1989 as a wholly-owned subsidiary operating six CDL-A training campuses, produces hundreds of graduates per year who feed directly into Millis Transfer's driver pool. The company has held Certified Top Pay Carrier status for 15+ consecutive years and holds dozens of customer-issued Carrier of the Year awards and two Best Fleet to Drive For nominations.

Millis Transfer makes money by hauling freight on a per-mile basis for shippers (revenue is miles-driven multiplied by negotiated rates, with customer-specific pricing not publicly disclosed). Its go-to-market is direct: enterprise B2B freight sales for shippers, paired with direct driver recruitment for its own workforce via its website, the IntelliApp Driver Solutions application platform, phone outreach, content marketing, and the MTI training pipeline. Customer compensation to drivers follows a unit-pricing model paid per mile — $0.56 CPM for one-year-experience OTR/Regional drivers up to $0.61 CPM for experienced drivers, with MTI trainees earning $0.34 CPM during road training and incremental pay increases during their first year. Top drivers exceed $0.75 CPM weekly through mileage bonuses ($0.06–$0.07 CPM weekly tiers), quarterly and annual safety bonuses ($1 CPM each), detention pay after 90 minutes, and layover pay starting at $125. Benefits include health/dental/vision coverage through United Healthcare and MetLife, a 401(k) with up to 50% company match on the first 4%, and three weeks paid vacation starting in year one. The primary customer segments are manufacturing and warehousing enterprises (primary) and dedicated-route accounts; the secondary supply-side segment is experienced CDL-A drivers and aspiring drivers entering via MTI.

The business is asset-heavy, family-controlled, and dependent on driver supply as the binding constraint. The August 2025 pay rebase is a defensive response to industry-wide driver shortages rather than an offensive expansion. Geographic and vertical reach are deliberately bounded east of the Rockies, and the only disclosed customer (Schlitz Brewing) is historical. There is no public revenue disclosure, no external capital, and no AI/ML capability — competitive risk will intensify if larger carriers deploy AI-assisted routing and pricing while Millis Transfer remains a conventional asset-and-labor operator.

Name

Millis Transfer

Legal name

Millis Transfer

Website

https://millistransfer.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1936

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Millis Transfer is a family-owned dry van trucking carrier founded in 1936, operating 800+ trucks across the eastern United States to serve manufacturing and warehousing shippers, with a wholly-owned CDL-A training subsidiary supplying its driver pipeline.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Dry Van Trucking Services

NAICS

General Freight Trucking (4841), General Freight Trucking, Long-Distance (48412)

SIC

Trucking (No Local) (4213), Trucking & Courier Services (No Air) (4210)

akta.pro primary industry

Dry Van (General Freight) TL Carriers (TLADADAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Commercial Driving & Heavy Transport (CDL) (EDAOANAK)

Keywords

• Dry van trucking
• Freight transportation services
• Regional over-the-road hauling
• CDL-A driver training
• Manufacturing freight delivery

Headquarters

HQ city

Black River Falls

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices12 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations

Revenue model

1. Dry Van Freight Transportation: Millis Transfer operates as a dry van trucking carrier providing freight transportation services. The company generates revenue through hauling cargo for manufacturing and warehousing clients across regional, dedicated, and over-the-road routes. Revenue is based on miles driven and rates negotiated with customers for freight delivery services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Millis Transfer is a dry van trucking carrier operating a fleet of 800+ power units and 2,000+ trailers to provide freight transportation services for manufacturing and warehousing customers. The company offers regional, dedicated, and over-the-road routes east of the Rockies, supported by in-cab satellite communications, ELDs, and EDI integration for shipper data exchange. Its wholly-owned subsidiary Millis Training Institute (MTI) provides CDL-A driver training that feeds the company's driver pipeline.

Product overview

Millis Transfer operates as a dry van trucking company offering a portfolio of freight transportation services. The core offering is Dry Van Transportation Services, supported by Regional & Dedicated Routes providing flexible over-the-road and regional driving opportunities. EDI Services enable electronic data interchange with customers, while Satellite-Based Load Tracking provides real-time visibility into load status and scheduling. The company's sister company, Millis Training Institute (MTI), provides CDL-A training at six locations, creating a pipeline of qualified drivers for the fleet.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Dry Van Transportation Services

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered foundational, core and minor.

• Joseph Schlitz Brewing CompanyfoundationalOthers · 1 January 1960Long-standing contract with the Joseph Schlitz Brewing Company in the 1960s and 1970s was foundational to the company's growth and evolution. This historical partnership helped establish Millis Transfer's reputation for reliable freight transportation and contributed to the company's 'Getting It There' slogan.
• United HealthcarecoreOthersPartnership with United Healthcare for providing comprehensive health benefits to drivers. United Healthcare is one of the leading health insurance providers in the United States.
• MetLifecoreOthersPartnership with MetLife for providing employee benefits including dental, vision, and life insurance coverage to Millis Transfer drivers and employees.
• HeartLandminorOthersListed as 'In Association With' partner on Millis Training Institute materials. Nature of partnership not fully specified in available source material.
• Smith TransportminorOthersListed as 'In Association With' partner on Millis Training Institute materials. Nature of partnership not fully specified in available source material.
• IntelliApp Driver SolutionscoreTechnology or IntegrationOnline driver recruitment and application platform used by Millis Transfer for processing driver applications. Provides mobile-friendly quick apply functionality and online orientation capabilities.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• CRST International: CRST is a privately held TL and dedicated carrier operating a large dry van fleet similar to Millis. Both are private, family-influenced carriers running primarily east-of-Rockies lanes with strong focus on driver recruitment and training.
• Schneider National: Schneider National is one of the largest publicly traded truckload carriers in the U.S., operating a major dry van and intermodal network across all 48 states. It is directly comparable to Millis in dry van freight and customer base (manufacturing/retail shippers), though it is far larger and offers additional modes.
• Heartland Express: Heartland Express is a publicly traded irregular-route dry van TL carrier with a similar asset-based model and asset-light subsidiaries. Operates nationwide, but its core dry van service to manufacturing and consumer-goods shippers closely mirrors Millis' primary offering.
• Werner Enterprises: Werner Enterprises is a publicly traded TL carrier with a large dedicated and one-way dry van fleet, similar manufacturing/retail customer mix, and a comparable focus on driver culture and retention. Comparable in service offering though materially larger and more geographically diversified.
• Covenant Logistics Group: Covenant Logistics is a publicly traded TL carrier offering dedicated, refrigerated, and managed transportation. Overlaps with Millis in dry van and dedicated truckload for manufacturing/retail customers, though it is smaller than the largest peers and operates in adjacent modes.
• Prime Inc. Prime Inc. is a privately held, vertically integrated TL carrier that operates a proprietary CDL training school (Prime Inc. Academy) — directly parallel to Millis' Millis Training Institute. Comparable private model, dry van focus, and owned driver pipeline.
• Maverick Transportation: Maverick Transportation is a privately held TL carrier specializing in flatbed and dry van services with a strong driver-focused culture. Comparable private-model peer competing for similar driver talent and shipper relationships, though with a flatbed extension Millis lacks.
• Smith Transport: Smith Transport is a privately held dry van TL carrier with regional operations in the eastern U.S., listed as an MTI association partner. Similar fleet size, regional dry van focus, and private operating model make it a tight comparable.

Broad incumbents

• J.B. Hunt Transport Services: J.B. Hunt is a large, diversified publicly traded carrier with intermodal, dedicated, and dry van truckload services. Competes with Millis for manufacturing shipper freight and is broadly comparable on customer profile, though it operates a much larger and more diversified asset base.
• Knight-Swift Transportation: Knight-Swift is the largest TL carrier in North America, with national dry van, refrigerated, intermodal, and logistics operations. Overlaps with Millis in dry van truckload for manufacturing customers but operates at vastly greater scale and across additional modes.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/millistransfer
• Xx.com/millistransfer
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/millis-transfer

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries1 record

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 Millis Transfer