A genuine desire to serve the community has fuelled 30 years of success at transport and earthmoving company, Haack Logistics Group.
Matt Haack founded the company in 1996 after studying engineering and then buying his first truck and dog at 19 when he saw an opportunity.
“There was just a market – my father John was doing earthmoving locally and there weren’t really any trucks in our district at the time,” he said.
“My father’s father was into trucks and earthmoving as well – the Haacks have been in Beaudesert since the early 1960s.”
From the start, relationships were central to how Mr Haack did business.
“One of the first people to give me a go was old John from Coburn Sand and Gravel,” he said.
“He was the only other truck and dog in Beaudesert, so he was a competitor, but he utilised our services and then taught me – he was a real mentor for me as a young pup.”
Haack Logistics grew to have 18 trucks at its peak in 2017 and has 12 trucks today as well as the significant earthmoving component of the business, and the company employs 20 people.
“I started with trucks and that grew, then my father passed away at 47, I was only 26 or 27 and I had to take over that role with the earthmoving and worked with my brother Phil on that,” he said.
“Earthmoving grew to be our main business with the economic climate changing.”
Mr Haack estimates his trucks have covered more than 20 million kilometres over 30 years, servicing not only the local area but also travelling as far as the Northern Territory, Cowra, Chinchilla, Roma, Gayndah and Collinsville.
Like family
Haack Logistics trucks are known for the quirky names plastered across the front of each vehicle to promote their drivers and have a bit of fun.
There have been names like ‘Weight n for Wally’, after Wally Loweke who has been with Haack Logistics for 20 years, ‘Paulitical’ after Mr Haack’s former second in charge who was very diplomatic and Mr Haack’s own truck, named ‘Haackin it’.
That sense of family extends to the community, having sponsored Beaudesert Boxing Club from day one and many junior local sports clubs.
Mr Haack can also rattle off his top customers and suppliers over three decades.
“There’s John and Kath Cockburn, Sunmix Concrete, Fechner Brothers and Sue, Adrian and (the late) Michael Christoffel – they were all customers in the first six months of us doing business and we still work with all of them today,” he said.
“Then on the supplier side we also have Len Bundy and Maureen Ball, Peter and Donna Thomas from Thomas Welding, Mark Rowe who I went to school with and Graham Hinze who I used to do silage with when I first started – so I got to see a lot of Australia with him.”
Always evolving
Haack Logistics has continually diversified to serve the community.
These days they do transport, earthmoving, landscaping product and cold rooms, and over the years they have done lawnmowing and even had a cleaning business.
They carted materials for the Beaudesert Bypass and their truck, ‘Justifiable’, was the first truck over when it opened.
Next, the company plans to move from its current Gleneagle location to the Bromelton State Development area to continue business.
Reflecting on 30 years, Mr Haack said it was about the people.
“It’s about relationships and in business it has to be win-win meaning a win for us and a win for our client,” he said.
“We’ve always diversified to support the community – we’re proud community people.”
