James Smith

James Smith laughs when he talks about his past. Crazy about music in his youth, he studied music at the Kansas City Conservatory. He joined the Navy in 1958 and ended up as a meteorologist based in London, where he married his Irish wife,

Hannah, who is secretary-treasurer of Fikes Truck Line of Hope.

After leaving the Navy, he worked for Gordon Transport and was director of sales for ABF Freight System Inc. Smith still credits Robert Young III, chairman of Arkansas Best Corp. of Fort Smith, as the person who most inspired him to do what he has done in trucking.

When the federal law on trucking changed in 1980, Smith saw his opportunity to buy Fikes Truck Line, then an intrastate carrier, and expand it. That he has done.

The company had only 11 trucks when he bought it in 1981. Now it has 49 employees and nearly 500 contract drivers. Fikes, a flatbed carrier, has seen an average annual revenue growth of 12.4 percent during the past three years.

Smith readily confesses that he knew about sales when he bought the company but nothing about safety, compliance or operations. But he learned.

And he operates the company by “hiring the person with the most want-to and teaching them what you know.”

Smith said he’s most proud of helping to develop the kind of management by which Fikes operates — employees have the freedom to learn and grow, and everyone is treated with trust and respect.

Coming up on its 25th anniversary under Smith’s ownership this year, Fikes adopted a new slogan that articulates his vision: “’Connecting People With Purpose’ is why we are in business in the first place. It is a statement about how we interact with each other, our drivers and our customers, one that gives meaning to our work and to our lives. It’s the real secret to our success.”

Smith also serves on the board of First National Bank of Hope and has been active in state and national trucking associations.