By Sam Elliott
Togo Express is one of the newest businesses to call Zionsville home, but the trucking company’s owners have been fast friends for more than 30 years. Together, Misty Boodt and Jo Ellen Roberts have successfully broken into a typically male-dominated industry, and their business is growing.
The company — pronounced “toe-go” — is a certified Women’s Business Enterprise trucking organization founded by Boodt in June 2012. Not long after, she brought in best friend and former roommate Jo Ellen Roberts. The pair first met during their days at Indiana University and, in separate conversations, each described the other as being “like a sister.”
“I started and got (Togo) up and running, then Jo was helping as a consultant before she bought in (in December 2013), and here we are today three years later,” said Boodt, 47.
Today, Togo’s headquarters are at 10825 Andrade Dr. in Zionsville. The company recently moved from Park 100 in Marion County after its previous building was being sold.
Mutual friends at supplier Star Leasing put Boodt and Roberts in touch with Daryll Guiducci, the owner of Jet Star, Inc., which is now sharing a building with Togo. Although Jet Star is also in the trucking and transportation business, Togo focuses on dry van freight and the two companies aren’t competitors.
“We love it here. Daryll and the Jet Star family have been fantastic to us,” Boodt said. “They have opened their arms and brought us in and we feel like part of the family. It’s been a great transition to the space here and we love Zionsville … Trucking can be very hard and it can be a very cutthroat industry. To meet somebody that does well and is very successful and very nice and open and helpful is a very big relief. It’s just very refreshing to us.”
Togo tries to be a refreshing place for its drivers and employees to work, which was always a goal of Boodt’s as she was embarking on breaking into the traditionally male-dominated trucking industry.
“It was interesting to break into that, but my goal behind this was I really just wanted to create a nice place to work,” she said. “I really wanted to create something different. In the trucking industry, it seems like there are always people yelling at each other and experiences are bad. I have drivers telling me, ‘Really, you’re not trying to take my money and you actually do what you say you’re going to do?’ It was important to me to create a business where we did what we said we were going to do and we’re fair and represent ourselves well out in the industry.”
The company’s early days included some trial and error as they worked to establish themselves in the business.
“Everything has been tough. We’ve made some mistakes and learned from them,” said Roberts, 48. “Three years — which we celebrated at the end of June — is like 20 years really in the trucking business. It’s a milestone because a lot of companies just don’t make it that long. It’s tough business. We’ve made it through three years and have high expectations, goals and plans for the next three plus after that.”
The company currently has six drivers and as many trucks, but leases and rents others and is looking to make more hires as it continues to grow.
“The hardest thing, I think, is getting that right formula, getting the right amount of drivers, the right amount of trucks and equipment for the right amount of freight,” Boodt said. “It’s a balancing act to put it together. That’s what we’re searching for, to get our sweet spot.”
GET TO KNOW MISTY BOODT
Favorite pastime? Cooking/grilling out and hanging with friends and family.
Favorite local restaurant? Noah Grant’s
Favorite color? Purple
Birthplace? Kokomo, Ind.
Favorite vacation location? Anywhere in the Caribbean or where there is “Island time.”
Place of worship? I identify the most with First Society of Friends Church.
What kind of car do you drive? Jeep
Most DVR’d TV show? Don’t have a DVR
Favorite quote? “You must be the change you wish to see in the world”— Gandhi
Motto to live by? Carpe diem
Early morning riser or night owl? Early Morning Riser….
GET TO KNOW JO ELLEN ROBERTS
Favorite pastime? Watching television. I have a thing for crime shows.
Favorite local restaurant? Rick’s at Eagle Creek is my go to in the city. In Zionsville, my new favorite is Rosie’s Place.
Favorite color? Blue
Birthplace? Macon Georgia
Favorite vacation location? Anyplace I have never been before. I like exploring new places.
Names of spouse, kids? Jim. Five between the two of us: four boys and one girl, 18,18,16,15,13 are the ages.
Place of worship? Everywhere, all the time, wherever and whenever I feel the need for my higher power.
What kind of car do you drive? Audi A4 convertible
Most DVR’d TV show? Criminal Minds
Favorite quote? Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
Motto to live by? One thing at a time and keep on trucking. This applies to daily life. Break things down and check off what needs to be done now and keep going. It keeps from things seeming insurmountable.
Early morning riser or night owl? Night Owl – hands down. Misty is the opposite so we work well together in a 24-hour day business.
