🎣 Echo Acquires ITS

FreightCaviar Weekly Recap. From Echo's acquisition of ITS Logistics, to Winter Storm Fern, here are this week’s most talked-about freight stories.

🤝 Echo Acquires ITS Logistics

Echo Global Logistics has agreed to acquire ITS Logistics, creating a combined 3PL with roughly $5.4 billion in pro forma 2025 revenue.

Echo CEO Doug Waggoner said ITS brings “highly differentiated solutions” that pair with Echo’s technology and analytics platform.

ITS CEO Scott Pruneau said the deal expands execution across complex supply chains by combining scale, multimodal depth, and AI-driven tools.

The acquisition is expected to close in the first half of 2026 pending approvals.

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👀 Trucking via Telegram

Danielle Chaffin is raising questions about an unidentified trucking company allegedly recruiting drivers overseas via Telegram and operating nearly 400 trucks out of an apartment complex.

Chaffin notes the company appears active in inspections and hauling freight for multiple shippers, despite unconventional operations.

Concerns continues to mount around carrier vetting, labor sourcing, compliance, and how large fleets can move freight while operating outside traditional infrastructure norms.

An issues brokers and shippers continue to grapple with as capacity and enforcement gaps persist.

❄ FreightCaviar Story of the Week: Freight vs Winter Storm

A major winter storm, now named Fern, is scheduled to strain freight movement this weekend across the South, Midwest, and East Coast as snow, ice, and prolonged cold will hit core lanes.

Data from Scott Pecoriello, Founder/CEO at WeatherOptics, points to elevated delay risk and roughly 30% slower freight movement.

David Spencer, VP of Market Intelligence at Arrive Logistics, said the storm is slated to bring “widespread areas of ice and snow, likely in areas not used to seeing that kind of winter precipitation.”

For the full breakdown on what the impending storm will bring, read here.

📈 Shipper Rates Surged After 2021 Storm

The developing winter storm Fern is being compared to Winter Storm Uri, which disrupted freight markets in early 2021.

Uri left more than 4.5 million homes and businesses without power, disrupted fuel and water systems, shut down highways, and contributed to over 240 deaths, with economic losses estimated near $200 billion.

Texas winter storm official death toll now put at 246

Officials added 36 to the estimate of lives lost in the disaster, which knocked out power in much of the state. Some experts place the toll even higher.

The Texas TribunePatrick Svitek

Data from DAT Freight & Analytics, analyzed by Ken Adamo, General Manager and Chief of Analytics, shows spot rates surged immediately after Uri and stayed elevated well beyond the blackout period.

🎣 THE FREIGHT CAVIAR CORNER

• FreightCaviar Podcast: We sat down with Garrett Allen, Founder of SearchCarriers.com, in which we talked about building a carrier discovery and investigation tool and what’s coming next for the platform. Catch the episode on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts.
• Now Hiring: Western Reserve Logistics Group is looking for a remote Logistics Account Manager.

MEME OF THE WEEK