Bennett Celebrates 50 Years

In 1974, J.D. and Marcia Garrison bought a small contract carrier named George Bennett Motor Express, which had two contracts, 15 trucks and 30 trailers.

n 1977, just a few short years later, George Bennett Motor Express grossed over $1 million in annual revenue.

Original Drivers and Employees

In 1978, J.D. and Marcia purchased their first drop deck trailer. Before Marcia could make a payment on the equipment, J.D. had made an appointment with Mr. C.K. Crawford at Ford in Romeo, MI to haul tractors.

Image of Ford Tractors

In 1980, Bennett stepped into a new decade with the purchase of a Texas Instruments Personal Computer. The salesman said that this would be the first and last computer that Bennett would ever buy.

Early Bennett IT Images

In 1980, Bennett held its first annual “Agents Meeting” in the back room of the McDonough, Georgia Holiday Inn. This meeting would eventually become our Annual Symposium, a 2 day learning event and recognition banquet held at beautiful facilities like Stone Mountain and the Georgia Aquarium.

Symposium Images

J.D. Garrison became very ill and passed away unexpectedly, in 1981. At this point Marcia had to make one of the hardest decisions of her life: close the doors of Bennett or carry on with the vision that had carried them this far. With the support of friends, family and loyal employees the vision was carried into the future.

By 1981, G.B.M.E had outgrown their facilities on Highway 81 in McDonough, Georgia. A few miles from the original location, on Industrial Parkway, a new 4,000 square foot corporate headquarters and repair facility was built.

Corporate Building Images

In 1985, George Bennett Motor Express became Bennett Motor Express. The name change was made primarily for convenience, yet began a period of expansion and diversification of the company.

Bennett Jacket

In 1986, Bennett responded to customer requests for transporting rolling stock by starting a new division, DriveAway. Ted Paul and Gerald Fitzgerald played key roles in establishing services that deliver vehicles from manufacturers to dealers across the US and around the world.

Bennett Distribution Services was founded in 1988 as a port services company. The operation was designed to provide marshalling services and support the logistics needs of Bennett Motor Express customers in the Port of Baltimore.

Marcia Taylor, CEO of Bennett was honored by Venture Magazine in 1988 as the “Female Entrepreneur of the Year”, for the state of Georgia. Her stellar reputation in a male-dominated industry continues to this day.

In 1989, David Lowry planned and developed the heavy haul division with the support of Elmer Clevenger. How Bennett and David started their Heavy Haul Division is not your typical way of doing business.

In 1993, Bennett went global by establishing Bennett International Transport, a specialized freight forwarding operation designed to meet any need door to door whether ocean, truck, rail, barge or air freight. BIT has expanded worldwide with agents on six of the seven continents.

Seizing an opportunity in the housing boom, Bennett Truck Transport was founded in 1994. Under the leadership of Ted Paul and Danny Lowry, BTT became an industry leader in the transport of manufactured houses and commercial buildings using specialized toter trucks.

Bennett delivered 1,500 transit buses for the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, Ga.

In 1997, Bennett owner operator, Charles Pressley had the opportunity to haul La Quinta”s 30,001st room across the country. However, Big C never thought this haul would make him a TV star.

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Marcia Taylor was invited to the White House in 1999 to participate with other women during the “Working Women”s Top 500 Women-Owned Business Conference”, where she was recognized in the top 107 out of 500 women-owned businesses in America.

2005 marked the first time that the Atlanta Business Chronicle named Bennett the #1 Women Owned Business in Atlanta. The company retains the title today.

In 2007, Bennett launched a portable storage shed and steel structure manufacturing business. Under Danny Lowry”s leadership, Bennett Building Systems has built high-quality sheds, barns and garages for the consumer market, distributed directly from the factory and retailers across the southeast.

In 2010, Bennett established a 17 acre oil pipe yard. This service allowed Bennett to provide handling, quality control, and inventory management for our oil industry customers.

As a holding company for a diverse portfolio of businesses, Bennett International Group has had many brands over the years. In 2011, a single Bennett logo unified the brand.

The year 2012 brought accolades to Bennett as we were awarded Georgia Family Business of the Year. This award further demonstrates our commitment to delivering outstanding services consistently to our customers.

Bennett is recognized as one of the Top 100 Workplaces in Atlanta. This award further distinguishes us as a leader in our industry and shows our dedication to our workforce.

Bennett Motor Express adds new Super Heavy Haul agent on West Coast, Contractors Cargo Company.

Bennett celebrates its 40th Anniversary in 2014. Forty years of dedicated service to our customers.

Bennett Truck Transport completes asset purchase of the RoadMasters Companies in Athens, Texas.