How much freight spend is typically recoverable in a PE-owned manufacturer?

Active freight management typically recovers 15 to 25% of total freight spend. For a portfolio company with $4 million in annual freight costs, that's $600,000 to $1 million per year. At a 7x exit multiple, that recovery translates to $4.2 to $7 million in added enterprise value.

Why don't mid-market companies manage freight costs on their own?

At the $50 to $200 million revenue band, freight rarely has a dedicated owner. The function gets distributed across operations coordinators, warehouse managers, and finance staff. The costs accumulate because no single person is accountable for the total number.

What does an unaudited freight invoice cost a portfolio company?

Industry estimates suggest billing errors, duplicate charges, and carrier overcharges appear on 4 to 8% of freight invoices. For a company with $3 to $5 million in annual freight spend, that means up to $400,000 in recoverable charges processes without review each year.

How quickly can freight improvements show up in EBITDA?

Some recoveries, particularly invoice audits and carrier rate renegotiations, can begin producing results within the first 90 days. Building a multi-year track record that is visible and credible to buyers takes longer, which is why addressing freight early in the hold period matters.

How do I know if a portfolio company has an unmanaged freight problem?

Benchmark freight spend as a percentage of revenue against industry comparables. A company running 8 to 10% with no dedicated freight management function, no evidence of carrier contract renegotiation, and no invoice audit process has the pattern.

How a PE-Owned Craft Beverage Packaging Manufacturer Saved $9.3 Million on Freight

Christopher Nadeau
Jan 30
2 min read

Updated: May 21

The private equity owned leader in shrink-sleeve labels for aluminum cans compressed FTL spend by 23.4% and LTL by 31.7%, turning an unmanaged cost line into EBITDA.

The result came from a cost line that had never been competitively priced or actively managed.

Colorful soda cans with abstract patterns are neatly arranged on wooden shelves. The background is neutral, enhancing the cans' vibrant hues.

The Freight Operation Before Haversack’s Engagement

FTL was sourced to three providers with no competitive bidding structure. LTL pricing had never been benchmarked against market rates.

Shipments were booked manually, with no TMS and no visibility into shipping data after a load left the dock.

Damage claims were running 77% above industry standard, representing direct margin leakage that surfaced in vendor relationships before it ever appeared on the P&L. One in four FTL shipments was dropped or delayed, generating vendor fines absorbed as a cost of doing business rather than flagged as recoverable.

There was no freight bill audit between operations and accounting. Invoices were approved as submitted and the overpayment was not visible because no one had built the infrastructure to see it.

Inside the Freight Value Creation Sequence

Early in the engagement, the company opened FTL sourcing to a competitive bid board, ending the three-provider arrangement and compressing freight costs. A tailored LTL carrier network replaced unbenched market rates.

Haversack TMS went live, giving operations real-time shipment visibility and eliminating manual booking.

Invoice audit controls were activated between operations and accounting.

Onsite packaging consulting reduced damage claims by 40%, cutting the single largest source of operational loss. Labor in freight operations decreased 7%.

Across the engagement, the company recovered $9.3M in freight spend by saving $5.4M for FTL freight and $3.9M for LTL, and generated $630,000 in direct profit contribution.

Where This Pattern Repeats Across PE Portfolios

At an 8x EBITDA multiple, $9.3M in annual freight recovery equals $74.4M in enterprise value, created from a cost line most deal teams never model before close. The pattern is consistent: any PE-owned manufacturer where freight runs without competitive pricing, without a TMS, and without invoice controls has a version of this problem. The structure repeats; only the numbers change.

The Haversack Blog

How a PE-Owned Craft Beverage Packaging Manufacturer Saved $9.3 Million on Freight

The Freight Operation Before Haversack’s Engagement

Inside the Freight Value Creation Sequence

Where This Pattern Repeats Across PE Portfolios

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