Some business stories begin with a million-dollar investment, a family tradition, or a carefully crafted plan. The story of Carlos Zavaleta , CEO of Transportes GLIZIM , began far from highways, tractor-trailers, and container yards. His first foray into the working world was as an assistant in a dental office, never imagining that a seemingly ordinary conversation would end up changing the course of his life.
Coming from a family that, as he himself describes, had had to get ahead from the bottom, Carlos Zavaleta grew up with an aspiration that seemed simple, but which over the years would become the driving force behind his decisions: “to build a different future.”
Although there was no tradition linked to transportation in his family environment, from an early age he developed a concern that would end up marking his trajectory: the desire to improve himself and build a future with better opportunities .
“The aspiration to always grow, to always achieve and obtain something better to give a better life. That’s what drove me to keep going,” she shared in an interview with T21.
It was during his early working life that one of the patients at the dental office where he worked asked him a question that, without knowing it, would open a new stage: why not try something different?
That man invited him to work with his wife, who was the finance director at an agency connected to the customs sector. Carlos Zavaleta accepted and started as a billing assistant, a position from which he gradually became familiar with foreign trade processes, customs operations, and land transportation.
Over time, he took on responsibilities in the accounts receivable department. It was precisely from this position that an unexpected opportunity arose. One of the agency’s clients contacted him because they needed to find transportation in Veracruz . The provider they were working with had stopped meeting their needs, and they required an alternative. Carlos Zavaleta decided to help!
Through a friend, he met a young transporter who began to teach him how the business worked: getting cargo, identifying available units, and connecting those who needed to move goods with those who could do it.
What began as a solution for a client sparked a concern that grew until it became a decision that would change his life completely: to buy his first truck .
“And from there, everything else has gradually taken shape,” he said.
That first vehicle represented much more than the start of a business . It was the possibility of building something of his own in an industry he was just beginning to understand, but in which he had found an opportunity to grow.
When the road forced a change of direction
Without an inherited company or a family structure dedicated to transportation, Carlos Zavaleta began to develop the project that would give rise to Transportes GLIZIM.
Its initial operations were concentrated in the port of Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz, where the company was involved in the transport of fertilizers using flatbed trucks. However, the path of business does not always unfold according to plan.
Following the explosion at the Pajaritos petrochemical complex, the company decided to close its base in Coatzacoalcos and relocate its operations to the port of Veracruz. This decision marked the end of one chapter and the beginning of another, this time in an environment where container shipping would ultimately become its primary activity.
In Veracruz, the opportunity arose to join the group of suppliers of a company in the sector, which allowed GLIZIM to expand its participation in containerized cargo transport.
Over the years, the company specialized in the transport of containers in simple and full configurations, in addition to incorporating services through platforms for loose cargo, oversized goods and vehicles of lesser capacity.
Currently, Transportes GLIZIM operates around 85 units in the port of Veracruz , through a scheme that combines its own fleet with contracted carriers, a strategy that allows it to respond to the availability needs of its clients.
Behind that growth were also investors who decided to support the project through different stages. Some remained and others withdrew their participation, leading to the current structure, in which Carlos Zavaleta continues to lead the company and has his brother as a partner.
But the growth wasn’t limited to adding trucks. As operations increased, new needs and opportunities arose to develop complementary activities.
Over the years, GLIZIM expanded its operations into other activities related to road transport and logistics , including a container terminal, the manufacture of container chassis and dolis, as well as local transport services.
This diversification led to a business structure that currently brings together more than 60 employees , a growth that has also led Carlos Zavaleta to transform his way of directing and managing the business.
“GLIZIM grew in the blink of an eye,” he said. He shared how the business’s own evolution led him to develop new administrative capabilities.
The need to integrate teams, strengthen the human resources area, establish evaluation mechanisms and incorporate control systems became part of a new stage for the organization, which has also begun working on certification processes such as CTPAT and Authorized Economic Operator (AEO).
Beyond metrics and operations, Carlos Zavaleta believes that leadership is also built on close relationships with people. Therefore, he strives to maintain direct communication with his employees, share everyday spaces, and listen firsthand to their concerns. “Empathy and humility. I think these are qualities that have helped me a lot,” he stated, convinced that GLIZIM’s growth must also translate into opportunities for those who are part of the company.
Challenges that also travel by road
But while GLIZIM continues to grow, there are challenges that don’t disappear with experience or the passage of time. One of them is highway insecurity , which has forced the company to strengthen its protocols with a control tower that monitors its vehicles 24 hours a day, both in Veracruz and Lázaro Cárdenas. According to Carlos Zavaleta, these measures have thwarted more than six attempted armed robberies during 2026 , using mechanisms that include immobilizing the vehicles to prevent cargo theft.
However, his biggest concern lies with the truck drivers. “Unfortunately, the generational chain of operators is ending,” he warned, noting that while the most experienced drivers are beginning to retire, new generations are showing little interest in joining an industry marked by insecurity, a lack of infrastructure, and scant recognition for their work. This situation, in his view, threatens the future of an industry on which a large part of the country’s supply depends.
Just over a decade after that first foray into transportation, the young man who started working in a dental office now leads an organization that has grown through opportunities, difficult decisions, and new challenges.
When asked how he would define GLIZIM , he answers with two words: “Dedication and security.” Because after so many miles traveled, he says he understood that building a company is not just about moving goods, but also about taking care of people and maintaining the trust of those who have accompanied him.
Before finding his place in the trucking industry, Carlos Zavaleta had to discover his own path. And that story, which began far from the highways, still has many miles ahead.
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