What Container Services International does

Container Services International (CSI Group, LLC) is a Quincy, Massachusetts-based trading and services firm that sells, rents, leases, and delivers shipping containers for both international freight movement and on-site storage. Founded in 2011 by Stephan Howard, the company has been majority owned since 2017 by Eimskip, the Icelandic ocean carrier, and operates as an independent profit center within that group. The product portfolio comprises ISO-standard dry containers (20 ft STD, 40 ft STD, 40 ft HC), refrigerated containers (reefers) capable of holding temperatures from -13 °F to 77 °F, and special configurations including open-top, open-side, flat-rack, double-door, duocon, and 3-in-1 sets. Grading follows ISO, CSC, and IICL standards across New, One Trip, Cargo Worthy, and Wind & Water Tight tiers, with surveyor-certified cargo-worthiness inspections.

CSI generates revenue across three streams: one-time container sales (new and used across all four grades), recurring rental and leasing arrangements (short-term rentals, one-way leases, 7+ year long-term leases, lease-purchase, sale-and-leaseback), and professional logistics services (flatbed / Landoll / tiltbed delivery, port delivery for export, roundtrip and live-load deliveries). Pricing is quote-driven rather than published; costs vary by grade, location, and specification (COR-TEN steel, bamboo or tropical hardwood flooring, zinc-rich paint systems).

The go-to-market is sales-led and relationship-driven, with named account managers handling project-based and recurring demand from freight forwarders (Flexport, Gateway Logistics), logistics operators (Maine Trailer), municipal buyers (Bolton, MA DPW), and individual storage customers. Global scale comes from Eimskip's ocean carrier network, while domestic New England coverage is reinforced through a referral partnership with Kelly Container and Kelly Freezer. The company supplements direct sales with an unusually content-rich website — glossary, ISO coding guide, grading primer, cost breakdown — that functions as both education and lead generation.

Name

Container Services International

Legal name

CSI Group, LLC

Website

https://csiu.co

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Container Services International is a Quincy, MA-based seller and lessor of ISO-standard shipping containers — dry, refrigerated, and special configurations — serving freight forwarders, logistics operators, government buyers, and storage customers globally, majority owned since 2017 by Icelandic ocean carrier Eimskip.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Shipping Container Distribution and Logistics

NAICS

Freight Transportation Arrangement (488510), Warehousing and Storage (4931), Transportation and Warehousing (48-49)

SIC

Arrangement Of Transportation Of Freight & Cargo (4731), Public Warehousing & Storage (4220), Wholesale-Industrial Machinery & Equipment (5084)

akta.pro primary industry

Intermodal Container Leasing/Rental (ISO Containers) (TLABACAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Portable Storage Container Long-Distance & Interstate Moves (HSAKAIAG), Reefer Container (Port/Intermodal) Cold Storage & Plug-In Yards (TLALABAK)

Keywords

• Shipping container sales
• Container rental leasing
• Refrigerated containers
• Container logistics delivery
• ISO shipping containers

Headquarters

HQ city

Quincy

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Container Sales: Sale of new and used shipping containers for storage and shipping (SOC) purposes. Containers are sold in various grades including New, One Trip, CW (Cargo Worthy), and WWT (Wind & Water Tight).
2. Container Rental & Leasing: Short-term and long-term rental and leasing of containers. Offerings include standard one-way leases (OWL), long-term leases (LTL typically 7+ years), lease purchase (LP), and sale-and-leaseback (SLB) arrangements. Monthly payments are typical for short-term storage projects.
3. Logistics & Delivery Services: Logistics services for shipper owned containers including delivery on flatbed, grounding via Landoll or tiltbed trailers, delivery to port for export, roundtrip deliveries, and import/export services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Container Services International (CSI Group, LLC) sells and rents ISO-standard shipping containers—including dry containers (20ft, 40ft STD, 40ft HC), refrigerated containers (reefers), and special configurations (open top, open side, flat rack, double door, duocon)—in multiple grades (New, One Trip, CW, WWT). The company complements container supply with rental/leasing arrangements (one-way, long-term, lease-purchase, sale-and-leaseback) and end-to-end logistics/delivery services for shipper-owned containers (SOCs), serving importers/exporters, freight forwarders, government/municipal buyers, and storage customers nationally and internationally.

Product overview

Container Services International (CSI Group) is a shipping container sales, rental, and leasing company offering a portfolio of container products and services. The core product line includes three main container types: Dry Containers (available in 20ft, 40ft STD, and 40ft HC configurations), Refrigerated Containers (Reefers) for temperature-controlled transport, and Special Containers (Open Top, Open Side, Flat Rack, Double Door, Duocon in various sizes from 10ft to 53ft). These container products are complemented by related services including Container Sales, Container Rentals & Leasing, Logistics & Delivery for shipper-owned containers, and regional New England Services through partner Kelly Container. CSI also provides extensive educational resources including Container Cost Breakdown guidance, Container Grading & Certification standards (New, One Trip, CW, WWT), Container Numbers & Prefix guides, ISO Coding references, and a comprehensive Container Glossary covering industry terminology.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Dry Containers Standard ISO dry van shipping containers available in 20ft, 40ft Standard, and 40ft High Cube configurations for cargo transport and storage, sold in grades including New, One Trip, CW (Cargo Worthy), and WWT (Wind & Water Tight).
• Refrigerated Containers (Reefers) Insulated temperature-controlled containers capable of maintaining cargo at temperatures from -13°F to 77°F with humidity and airflow control, powered via genset (clip-on or underslung) or ship generators during transit, for perishable goods shipping and storage.
• Special Containers Specialized container configurations including Open Top, Open Side, Flat Rack, Double Door, Duocon, and collapsible flat rack in various sizes from 10ft to 53ft for oversized or specialized cargo.
• Container Sales Purchase of new or used shipping containers for storage or shipping (SOC) purposes, available in multiple grades (New, One Trip, CW, WWT) for importers, exporters, freight forwarders, government/municipal buyers, and storage customers.
• Container Rentals & Leasing Short-term and long-term rental and leasing options for shipping containers, including standard one-way leases (OWL), long-term leases (LTL, typically 7+ years), lease purchase (LP), and sale-and-leaseback (SLB) arrangements with monthly payments typical for short-term storage projects.
• Logistics & Delivery for Shipping Containers (SOCs) End-to-end logistics services for shipper-owned containers including delivery on flatbed, grounding via Landoll or tiltbed trailers, port delivery for export, roundtrip deliveries with live loads, drop-and-pick services, and import/export services.
• New England Container Services Regional New England container sales, rental, and modification services delivered through partner Kelly Container, including refrigerated units with in-house technicians and 20' and 40' container offerings.

Quantifiable outcome

• Containers typically last upwards of 25 years depending on climate conditions
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• Kelly ContainerminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCSI refers New England-based customers for dry and refrigerated storage container sales and rentals to partner Kelly Container (kellycontainer.com). Kelly Container is described as the only domestic reefer rental company in New England with in-house technicians. Services include container rental/purchase (20' and 40'), refrigerated containers, blast freezers, trucking, custom modifications, and specialty containers.
• Kelly Freezer (kellyfreezer.com)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorReferral partner for refrigerated and freezer container needs in the New England area, operated by the same Kelly group. Includes blast freezer sales and specialized freezer rentals.
• National Portable Storage Association (NPSA)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCSI Group LLC is a member of the NPSA, a trade association for portable storage companies. NPSA logo is featured on the CSI website footer, indicating industry association membership.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• ContainerExchanger: Online marketplace and broker for buying, selling, and trading shipping containers; competes with CSI for transactional container sales demand from SMB and individual buyers, often at lower price points.
• Container One: Direct US competitor selling and renting new and used ISO shipping containers (dry, reefer, special) with nationwide delivery, closely overlapping CSI's product line and SMB/mid-market customer base.
• Conexwest: Direct competitor offering new and used shipping containers for sale, rent, and lease with online quote-based pricing and a comparable product catalog including reefers and special units.
• Falcon Containers: Direct competitor in the US shipping container sales and rental market, offering dry, refrigerated, and special containers with delivery services, targeting similar storage and logistics customers.
• Beacon Intermodal Leasing: Established US-based intermodal container lessor and dealer providing sale, lease, and lease-purchase of ISO containers, including one-way and long-term leases, directly comparable to CSI's leasing model.

Broad incumbents

• TRAC Intermodal: One of the largest intermodal container lessors in North America; competes for fleet leasing and SOC-style arrangements with shipping lines and freight forwarders that overlap CSI's enterprise customer base.
• Triton Container International: Large global container lessor with a deep fleet of dry, reefer, and special containers; overlaps with CSI's leasing business at the enterprise/SOC end of the market with significantly greater scale.
• Textainer: Global container lessor with a multi-million TEU fleet; serves the same international shipper and freight forwarder market as CSI's logistics/SOC offering but at vastly greater scale and with owned equipment.
• SeaCube Container Leasing: Major intermodal container lessor with a strong reefer fleet; competes for the same freight forwarder and BCO customers CSI serves with SOC arrangements, but at much larger scale and longer lease tenors.

Regional players

• Kelly Container: New England-focused container sales, rental, and reefer specialist that operates as CSI's referral partner; offers directly competing products and services in CSI's primary regional market.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/CSIContainers
• Xx.com/csicontainers
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/container-services-international---csi-group-llc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 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 Container Services International