If you think the move from fashion merchandising to logistics operations manager doesn’t seem like the most natural career shift, Angela Lam likely agrees with you. And she should know, because she’s the one who successfully did it.
Fello’s operations manager knew she was taking an unconventional step when she joined the company (originally known as Ally Freight) in 2021. But she recognized the importance of operational expertise for a third-party logistics company that would put major emphasis on customer service.
And as for operations, Angela knew that well. From working on a major London-based fashion-buyer – procuring items like diamonds and Italian gold jewelry – Angela recognized the similarities and the differences between her old and new roles.
“It was about doing things in a timely manner,” Angela said. “It was kind of like a big puzzle. I would work really well with the vendors, writing up the purchase orders and dealing with the buyers. So when it came time to apply that to logistics, I came in with a very strong, organizational, Type A personality. I’d always had to be organized for everything to go smoothly before these live shows, and it really transferred well to logistics.”
Granted, procuring the transport of freight didn’t have the look or feel of diamonds or Italian gold. But Angela found much of her same grid-based organizational system worked.
“The organizational problem-solving, making sure the deadlines hit, it’s the same basic approach to making sure everything’s going smoothly,” she said.
And of course, to shippers, their freight is every bit as important as the diamonds and the gold. That’s something Angela makes sure is reflected in Fello’s approach to customer service.
“I also found that I was very comfortable talking with trucking companies and being able to negotiate, applying the previous experience I had,” Angela said.
Angela found an especially strong bond between herself and co-founder Dylan Campbell in applying problem-solving principles to logistics. Dylan had the strongest logistics experience on the team when the company started, having worked with C.H. Robinson and Kuehne + Nagel. So Dylan’s logistics background combined with Angela’s problem-solving acumen served as the foundation of a formidable operations team – and both learned a great deal quickly from the other’s knowledge and strengths.
“When you’re in a big corporate setting like he was, everything is in place for you,” Angela recalled. “They had their processes and their different departments. It was all laid out. When we started this company with just three people, if something happened – a load got stolen or damaged – it was up to us to solve the problem.”
Far from being a logistics beginner now, Angela marvels at how much she’s learned.
“A customer could throw anything at me at this point and I would figure it out,” she says confidently.
She also smiles when she notes that, far from her initial expectations, “talking to truckers all day” is not really the most thorough description of her job. But it’s a good part, and it helps explain why she says she fell in love with the job.
Fello clients feel the same way about her.
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