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Having made his dislike of the HGV Road User Levy known recently, The Hub took the time to catch up with Ian Baxter, company founder and chairman of freight forwarder Baxter Freight.

Launched last April, the business has gone from a standing start to annual turnover of £5m, according to Baxter, who has set himself the not inconsiderable target of hitting £20m in annual turnover in year two.

We'll see if the former co-owner and MD at RH Freight can pull that one off, but the driver shortage appears to be helping rather than hindering the business.

“[The driver shortage] has created opportunities for us because people are coming to us saying our usual haulier can't help, can you? We're a non-asset based company;  let's look at the total market. It plays to our strength.

"The problem with operating trucks - whether you've got 10 or 10,000 - you've only got this amount. You are always driven by capacity, which at the moment is tight,” said Baxter.

The company now employs 70 staff at its Northampton office, and is putting an emphasis on bringing in young talent to the industry and investing in their training.

“We do have an experienced team as well, around 23 people who are freight industry experts with years of experience, but the rest of them are young people we are developing,” added Baxter.