Supply chain is not a typical compound word swirling around mainstream consciousness. But when it’s causing fights at supermarket aisles on who gets the last roll of toilet paper, and forces rations of baby formula, it’s no surprise the world of logistics is a hot topic.
“The topic is getting a tremendous amount of attention right now. The President of the United States spoke out and intervened in the current transportation and supply chain situation,” was the opening of the podcast The Logistics Tribe in October.
“Major news outlets and the evening news around the world are full of supply chain stories and attempts to explain what’s going on.”
It was this challenge that lured Jovid Bekov, a 34-year-old male fashion model from Dushanbe, Tajikistan, to make some moves.
Thanks to a friend’s guidance and a 2-semi-truck sleeper, he swapped his work in the runways and designer clothes for something more comfortable as he journeys through freeway, from state-to-state servicing the needs of retail giants like Amazon whose logistics requirement is enormous.
“The work just never stops,” Jovid said, on the rare occasion he gets to visit his hometown of NYC. When we caught up with him, he had been to Texas, California, Georgia, Florida, and Pennsylvania in just the past two weeks!
He began his trucking company in March 2021, when vaccinations have somehow eased movement amongst people and deliveries have picked up. His company, JB Carriers, had a brisk season though during the Ukraine war and rise in oil prices, business started to slow down.
According to Allied Market Research, however, the global logistics market is only expected to expand.
“The factors, such as growing e-commerce industry coupled with rise in reverse logistics operations and rise in trade related agreements, fuel the market growth,” the firm noted in a February 2021 report.
E-commerce, which only saw an explosion in growth during the pandemic, will drive the growth. Acumen Research and Consulting noted that the e-commerce logistics market will surpass $3.6 trillion by 2028.
“There’s so much opportunities in this market and I’m aiming to grab my piece of the pie,” Bekov said.
Although he does miss the life of hopping from one go-see (the fashion world’s version of casting) to another, he’s confident that this temporary shift to something more stable will pay dividends.
Once his business is well-established, Bekov plans to return to acting school and stay put in either Los Angeles or New York City to pursue acting.
“The world is so uncertain these days and I’m securing my financial future so I can stay focused, later on, in making my other dreams happen.”
