Cambridge Capital Insights
Convergence
Leading supply chain companies are expanding capabilities and broadening the scope of services offered to customers
Cambridge Capital looks for opportunities to build billion-dollar businesses in all areas of the supply chain. We understand the old economy as well as the new economy. As investors solely focused on the supply chain, we have deep market insights on where the industry has been and where it’s headed next.
The Supply Chain Opportunity: Billion dollar fortunes in the supply chain sector
19th Century: The Railroad
- In 1869, Leland Stanford drove the Golden Spike into the ground in Utah, creating the first coast-to-coast railroad
- Railroad fortunes were built by the Vanderbilts, Carnegies, and Flaglers
- The railroads formed the infrastructure for major economic development and the rise of transportation-based corporations such as Standard Oil
20th Century: The Box
- In 1956, Malcolm McLain refitted an oil tanker to carry 58 shipping containers from Newark to Houston
- Containerization helped fuel the fortunes of shipping and trucking empires like Maersk and JB Hunt
- This supply chain innovation formed the basis for global trade, enabling new winners such as Wal-Mart
21st Century: The Digital Supply Chain
- “The Amazon Effect” sparks a new ecosystem in automation, e-commerce fulfillment, and the digital supply chain
- Supply chains are evolving from analog to digital, as companies seek to automate as much as possible and meet consumer demand for faster delivery
- New billion-dollar winners emerge, including Uber, GENCO, Descartes, and XPO
Some of the key themes impacting the market and informing our investment strategy are outlined below
Globalization
As global trade continues to increase, leading supply chain companies will need to improve their global networks
Automation
Technology is helping leading supply chain companies improve operations and control complex distribution networks
Consolidation
Continued acquisitions of competitors in order to expand breadth and geographic scope of service offerings
E-Commerce
E-commerce is changing everything from transportation patterns to consumer behavior
