You’d never know it when watching her host Cargo Café and interviewing high-caliber guests from the logistics industry. And you’d never know it by the way you see her handling the flow of information about Bestway’s work among leaders of the supply chain.
But when Libby Hausman came to Bestway in 2024 to interview for a role in sales and marketing, she told top executives Jay Dever and Riley Wiles something she didn’t think would help her cause:
“I have no idea what the word logistics really means,” Libby told them. “I have no experience with supply chain.”
The response from Jay and Riley? According to Libby, it was simply, “We’re going to teach you.”
It turned out Libby soaked up supply chain/logistics knowledge like a sponge.
What she brought to the table that Bestway was ready for was marketing so sophisticated that it would help the company present itself in a way that reflected its real growth.
“They had been a smaller, family-owned business that previously hadn’t really done any dedicated marketing,” Libby says. “But they were ready to get more into that space, and didn’t have the capacity to take on any of that.”
Upon joining the company, Libby marveled at how much Bestway had achieved throughout much of its history just by word-of-mouth. But the company was growing, and it needed to do marketing at a more advanced level.
The opportunity came at an ideal juncture for Libby, who decided to move to Kansas City after finishing her Master of Business Administration at Webster University in St. Louis. That followed a bachelor’s degree at Lindenwood College in St. Charles, where she had a double major in business and dance.
Ah, dance. It may be Libby’s true love, having danced ballet since she was little, and she continues teaching it during her spare time now.
But Libby’s parents urged the double major because, as Libby now acknowledges, “dance doesn’t pay that well.”
The move to Kansas City was designed to prevent her from getting too comfortable in St. Louis after finishing school there. And it came just when Bestway was ready for someone with her marketing acumen.
But what a challenge.
“I was new to Kansas City,” she recalls. “I didn’t know anyone. I didn’t know the industry. And I was kind of stepping into a role that didn’t exist previously. But I found everyone very welcoming and very eager to help. When you work in this industry any amount of time, you find out how complicated it is. But people are very willing to explain, and they’re not going to look at you like you’re stupid for asking.”
Of course, there were some moments at Bestway when people wondered, “Who is this girl who keeps coming around and taking our pictures?” But it wasn’t long before Libby’s efforts to step up the marketing showed everyone why it’s so important.
Among her early achievements were a significant increase in the number of followers the company has on LinkedIn, as well as a significant role in the recent launch of the company’s new website – plus the ongoing content on its blog and in its digital newsletter.
One of the reasons these efforts have been so successful is that Libby is determined to protect the distinctive voice of Bestway in all conversations.
“I always try to tie it back to our four core values,” she says. “And if I don’t tie it back then I wonder, ‘What’s the point in saying this?’”
From the way people are responding, it looks like they’re getting the point.
“Jay always sends me little messages that he gets on LinkedIn whenever people compliment our marketing,” Libby says. “I think in our industry, with businesses of our size, it’s common to rely primarily on word of mouth when it comes to marketing. So when we started our content and our Cargo Café podcast, it really got the attention of people.”
That tends to happen when something is handled by a pro like Libby Hausman.
