Addition to the K&L Family!

We have a new addition to our family. We are new parents of a happy, healthy, brand new refrigerated sprinter to add to our fleet! As any new parent, we have a braggin’ picture to show. And, unlike many pictures of newborns where they look like little versions of prize fighters or miniature old men, this newbie truly looks gorgeous inside and out. As you can see by the picture, the graphics on this bad boy look like we walked right onto the set of Pimp My Ride or Monster Garage.

What you can’t see in the picture is that the double insulation and the efficient refrigeration unit can hold your expedited/exclusive temperature controlled cargo down to 0 degrees. Also, we have an added external lock on the doors that satisfies security requirements, keeping your high value pharmaceuticals or food ingredients safe and protected.

Obviously this beauty will not just be driven to church on Sundays. We are ready to move those time sensitive, temp controlled shipments of yours.

Another example of K&L going the extra mile!

The Final Countdown!

Good Morning!

I hope everyone enjoyed their weekend as much as I did!

Friday night was my last day of double workouts for an entire week! Saturday - Monday the 19th will be one per day. And you have no idea how happy that makes me. I have been doing 2-workouts a day for 3 weeks now. And it is so draining.

This break couldn't have come at a better time, Saturday was the K&L Christmas Party and it was absolutely perfect. We played a lot of fun games, danced, had a great dinner, and took pictures. They weren't just any regular pictures though... we had a company that came and took "Photo booth" pictures (Like the ones in the middle of the mall) They brought all kinds of dress up masks and props, it was probably the coolest thing I have ever seen! Everyone jumped right in and got goofy with it. I looked at all the pictures that next morning and literally fell to the floor laughing.

Everyone at K&L is so close with one another, we are able to just completely let loose and be so dorky that it is fun. I have never met another person who enjoys work events more than the people here. We really are like a big family.

Every year all of my coworkers pitch in and buy a present for our boss. I truly believe that this year was our best gift yet! We got a K&L Corn hole game. At the Christmas party we all got assigned a teammate and we will be having a in house competition. My partner is Bill! He is our local dispatch manager. I haven't seen him play yet, but I hope he's good because I can get very competitive! Ha ha.

Since I was so busy this weekend with Party planning and hanging out with the family, I am finding myself falling further and further behind on my Christmas gifts. I still have some shopping to do and I only have 1 present wrapped! To top it all off last night I noticed that this next weekend is the last weekend before the Holidays! It's CRUNCH TIME!!!

Christmas Countdown designed by Christmas Gifts.org

This Can't Be Happening

I had a very sad morning today.

I opened my blinds and saw our first snow fall.

Not having a garage when it snows is dreadful. I opened my car door and all the snow on my car flew in and landed on my driver seat. It was at that very moment that I realized that it is winter. I have been in denial for so long.

I do enjoy the snow when it comes to snow sports. I like to ski, tube, and ride snow mobiles... but besides that all it does is make my life so much more inconvenient. As I mentioned earlier, I have no garage so my car has to warm up for about 30 minutes before I go anywhere... When I take Kooter outside to go to the bathroom I have to stand knee deep in the snow and wait for 20 minutes while he sniffs every tree... then when we get back inside I have to wipe his feet and it is very difficult to get him to cooperate.

The worst part of it all is the parking lot at my apartment complex. The way the lot is set up is their are a bunch of separate squares with about 20 spots each. When the snow plow comes through to clear out the roads they dump all of the snow and block every ones car in. When we had that big blizzard last year, their was 4foot wall behind my car. I didn't even have a shovel so Ken had to drive to Home Depot at 7 in the morning to dig me out. Luckily he has a lifted truck with tires that are almost taller than me, so he was able to just back up over the mound.

I can't wait until my nice little Florida vacation. It will be a nice break from the lovely Chicago weather!

Their is one thing I would like to brag about! Last year we had a few major snow falls that practically shut down the entire area. In the transportation industry weather plays a huge roll in the ability to make pickup and delivery times. K&L made it through those storms without having to shutdown, without having any accidents, and we made each pickup and delivery time. It wasn't easy, but our drivers are well educated and are capable of handling anything that comes at them.

We are very good at what we do, and we are only getting better and better as time goes on.

If you need any assistance with any expedited shipping, local shipping, or air freight please give me a call!

Let's have a great day!

The Long Run

Good Morning! I hope everyone had a nice evening.

There is one topic of conversation that doesn't get mentioned as much as it should. It is a topic that you may think comes standard with any company, but it most certainly does not.

Customer Service.

What truly makes K&L stand out from the rest is we are not interested in doing "one and done" shipments with any customers. What we strive for is to work with our customers as a team, build long term relationships, and always providing each customer with the best service possible. No exceptions. This is why we run 24/7. We appreciate each customer; we want everyone to know that we are here for them and can always find an answer to their questions at any given point in time.

This does not include an after hour number that tells you to call back during regular business hours. No matter if it is the middle of the night or on weekends, we watch each shipment like hawks, and are constantly getting updates to make sure everything runs smoothly from start to finish.

Just in this past year alone I have had the privilege of meeting so many interesting people that I never would have met otherwise. Honestly, that is the best part of my job. I love when customer’s call me with a shipment they need moved immediately, but I love it just as much when customers call just to say HI! It makes each day fun. Those are the types of relationships that we build, and the only reason we can do it, is because we genuinely care.

With K&L no customer is ever just a number.

That is what customer service is all about.
You should not expect anything less.

A new additon to our fleet has been made! Say Hello to our new sprinter van!

Cookie Overdose

I hope everyone had a great weekend!

For me, this weekend was absolutely perfect! Friday night I spent with Tony Horton doing P90X. After that I could barely keep my eyes open. I had to make sure that I pushed it really hard because Saturday was my "cheat" day. I knew in the back of my mind that I would be scarfing cookies for breakfast lunch and dinner. And I did!

All the girls and my family got together and baked all day. We made so many cookies that I told Ken that he has to eat at least a dozen a day. Unfortunately, I can no longer eat any of them. I had my day to eat them, now I have to find the strength to keep to my diet. No matter how dedicated you are, turning down holiday traditions is by far the hardest to overcome.

Sunday was my recovery day. It was the Rest and Stretch work out... so I chose to rest. I pretty much slept all day. It couldn't have been any more perfect. At night Ken and I had a nice steak dinner and rented a RedBox movie. Then right back to sleep I went!

I have a very busy week ahead of me, so Sunday was crucial for survival! Between finishing up Christmas shopping, wrapping all the gifts, preparing for the K&L Christmas Party, and pulling doubles... It's going to be interesting.

No matter how busy I get, I am always willing to drop everything and help every one of my customers with any shipping needs they have. When I say we are 24/7 I mean it! :-)

Wish me Luck! :-)

Designer Christmas Tree?

The other night we put up our Christmas tree. I didn’t know there were “designer color themes” for trees. All I cared about was that my Chicago Bears ornament, the Somebody in Cincinnati Loves Me ornament, and my lucky golden golfball ornament made it on the tree. Unfortunately, since these didn’t meet the color pallet requirements I was vetoed, however arrangements have been made for a second tree that will be decorated with my oddball trinity. I assumed my normal duties for this event.

After bringing the boxes of decorations, I set up the tree, untangled the lights and got the heck out of the way. From that point, it was pure bliss for me to watch my lovely wife decorate the tree all the while old holiday music played bringing fond memories of Christmas days of old. Watching her laser-focus decorating that tree was like watching an artist paint a fresh canvas or like watching a hall of fame bound quarterback orchestrate a 90 yard, game winning, scoring drive with less than two minutes remaining. Beautiful.

I pray that you all have a similar Kodak moment.

It Never Fails

Last night was a very long and uneventful night for me.

As many of you know, I currently do not have feeling in my left leg due to a pinched nerve in my hip. I was doing my second workout of the day with P90X, everything was going fine. The workout was Back and Biceps and I was doing what they call Lawnmowers and I felt a little pop in my left arm. After pausing for a second I realized that my arm had gone numb as well. So I now have 2 pinched nerves on my left side. Luckily it doesn't hurt so even though it is probably not a good idea to keep going, I will.

Doing this program is more mental for me than it is physical. I do not like to stop things half way through. Sometimes I can be very stubborn :) It was the way I was raised.

Not only was it the way I was brought up, but it is also the base to what K&L stands for.

We are a family business that has made great successes over the years. The reason for these successes are simple. We do not give up. We like to call ourselves "Problem Solvers". When there is a problem or an extremely urgent shipment that may seem impossible at first glance. We are all willing and able to think outside of the box so that we can meet your needs. There is never only 1 solution to a problem. And we will find the best solution that will get your product from point A to point B safely and timely.

We may not be the every day carrier, but when it gets down to the wire, we are the best.

With the year coming to an end, things get crazy. I am here to help you 24/7.