Dive Brief:
- Sherwin-Williams increased outbound peak season freight volumes last year from its distribution center in Reno, Nevada, by 11% by combining its private fleet with purchased transportation, according to a May 8 press release.
- The company partnered with ITS Logistics to help it move freight during peak season, which is when the retailer typically faces challenges with fleet capacity at its Reno distribution center. The Reno center services the West Coast along with Arizona, Idaho and Utah.
- ITS Logistics delivered 56 million pounds of Sherwin-Williams freight to about 400 U.S. retail locations in 2025. So far in 2026, the logistics company has moved an additional 11.7 million pounds.
Dive Insight:
Retailers sometimes opt to manage a private fleet but it comes with its own set of challenges when dealing with varying freight volumes. For Sherwin-Williams, capacity issues drove the paint company to tap ITS Logistics’ Retail Store Delivery Solution for additional support.
"Purchased transportation could sometimes be construed as a necessary evil. I don't look at it that way. I look at it as building a partnership — one that gives us the flexibility to maintain a consistent fleet of drivers and increase capacity when there’s demand,” Ted Taxon, regional transportation manager at Sherwin-Williams, said in the release.
About 90% of the loads ITS manages for the paint retailer are delivered within 24 hours, Matthew Cooper, division manager of retail at ITS Logistics, said in the release. ITS also handles carrier dispatch, driver briefings, ETA communication, and advises the retailer on possible delays.
"Drivers are usually pulling a blue Sherwin-Williams trailer. That's a 48-foot billboard going down the road,” Taxon said. “It's incredibly important to have a partner that recognizes and reflects the same standard as our Sherwin team.”
ITS aims to capture opportunities as shippers facing volatility seek supply chain speed and consistency. ITS’ Retail Logistics Hub, for instance, launched in 2025 as a a nationwide network of fulfillment and distribution centers to appeal to shippers with varied needs.
ITS Logistics’ asset-lite trucking model allows it to scale rapidly, manage seasonal surges, and deliver cost-efficient nationwide coverage, Kasia Wenker, VP of solutions engineering, told Trucking Dive last year. The balance for retail is critical at times where there is a mix of smaller orders, faster replenishment and omnichannel needs that require flexibility and reliability.
