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TXC founders Spencer Strader and Dan Gardner met in Miami, FL when they were both employed by the renowned freight forwarder & customs broker, Fritz Companies. Spencer arrived to Miami before Dan, leaving his home state of Ohio after graduating college with nothing more than his car and a few hundred bucks in his pocket. After starting with Fritz in Boston, Dan was in-transit to an assignment in Bogota, Colombia when a training stopover in Miami led him to a month-long stint crashing at Spencer’s bachelor pad in South Beach.
With similar blue-collar backgrounds and a goal of venturing out into the world to make something of themselves, Spencer and Dan became fast friends and complementary work colleagues. Even after leaving Fritz Companies and moving on to senior management positions with companies like ECU Worldwide, Exel and DHL Global Forwarding, they remained in close contact, always finding time to meet up in places like Los Angeles, Sao Paolo and Hong Kong.
Over the years, the two realized just how aligned they were whenever they talked about their thoughts on running a “successful” 3rd Party Logistics company. At its core, their shared philosophy was founded on the belief that the only way to stand out from the competition was to create a corporate culture built on deep operational know-how, fanatical customer service, superior technology, and a commitment to continued education and training.
Thirty years after their paths crossed for the first time, Spencer Strader and Dan Gardner have formally joined forces to create Trade XCelerators, LLC. Founded on the tenets of that original philosophy, Spencer and Dan know that when people work in an environment where they’re encouraged to express themselves, are allowed to develop professionally and can be part of something bigger than any one person could ever do on their own, great things will happen.
And that’s exactly the culture that “Spence” and “DG” are building at Trade XCelerators, LLC. With an eye towards enhancing the overall competitiveness of its customers and a willingness to take on any competitor that crosses its path, “Logistics with an Edge” isn’t just a tag line at TXC, it’s a way of life.
Spencer Strader is co-founder and President of Trade XCelerators, LLC. A native of Dayton, OH, Mr. Strader began his career in logistics & customs brokerage at Fritz Companies in Miami, FL where he was the youngest executive ever to manage the #1 air export account in all of Latin America, IBM.
In 2004, Spencer opened ECI CHB Inc., the Customhouse Brokerage division of one of the world’s largest NVOCC’s, ECU Worldwide. As the Director of Imports at ECU Worldwide, Spencer was responsible for the U.S. Import Full Container Load, Less than Container Load, Customs Brokerages and Final Mile delivery services for the company.
A licensed Customs Broker and holder of a degree in Economics from Miami University, Spencer and family reside in S. Florida.
Dan Gardner is co-founder, EVP & Chief Learning Officer with Trade XCelerators, LLC. During his career in Third Party Logistics, Dan held senior management roles that include SVP USA with DHL Global Forwarding, President of Ocean World Lines and President of Latin America for Exel Global Logistics.
In addition to his business endeavors, Mr. Gardner is a multi-award winning adjunct professor of Supply Chain & Logistics, and remains on the faculty of Georgia Tech, California State University Long Beach and Long Beach City College.
Born in Lynn, MA, Mr. Gardner is a licensed U.S. Customs Broker and earned an MBA from the University of Miami. Dan currently lives with his family in Southern California.