A Tradition of Excellence
Like all great companies, Bridges Bros. is built on a foundation of integrity and hard work. The history of Bridges Bros. really begins with James J. Bridges, who was born and raised in Macon, Georgia. Frustrated by the lack of opportunity in the South, James relocated his family of 13 to Columbus, Ohio in 1946 to pursue a better future.
Remaining true to the principle his father taught him, “a day’s pay for a day’s hard work,” James purchased a truck and founded Bridges Landscaping in 1951. Within ten years his small business grew into a vital local business, securing work on important commercial, road, and landscaping projects.
James’s hard work and commitment paid off. Bridges Landscaping and the “Bridges” family name became associated with quality service, commitment and reliability.
In the 1960's and 70’s James expanded into the floral business, and the landscaping company continued to experience growth in both the residential and commercial arenas. The success and reputation of the floral business exceeded all expectations. By the 1980’s the Bridges family’s East 5th Ave Florist & Garden Store was a popular and trusted provider of floral arrangements and services for weddings, funerals, and special events.
A New Generation
In 1987, James’s son, Michael Bridges, embarked upon a new family enterprise and Bridges Cargo Express, Inc. was born. Bridges Cargo Express, Inc., was a semi tractor trailer company dedicated to providing over the road and hauling services, as well as LTL/TL services locally, regionally, and nationally for customers ranging from small businesses to Fortune 500 companies.
In the 90’s, the floral business was expanded through a joint venture between Michael and his brothers and the success of Bridges East 5th Avenue Florist & Garden Store was evidenced by their ability to secure key concession positioning at Ameriflora ’92 an international horticulture exhibition. This event, was heralded as “the Olympics for the floral horticulture industry” and attracted more than 5.5 million visitors!
These successes paved the way for Michael’s next venture, Bridges Bros. Trucking, Inc.
Bridges Bros. Today
Although the floral business continued to be profitable, Michael sought a new opportunity to expand his family brand to new ventures. In March of 2004, he used money he had saved for his retirement to purchase one dump truck. Like his father before him, Michael took one truck and began a new chapter in his family’s business, Bridges Bros. Trucking LLC.
Bridges Bros. Trucking is a full service trucking company engaged in hauling top soil, lime, gravel, sand, stone, asphalt and miscellaneous aggregates, and it continues the legacy of a family brand that has become synonymous with quality and excellence in service.
To support this new enterprise, Michael applied the values and business knowledge he gained through years of watching and working with his father as well as his own successes in corporate America and within five short years he had grown his fleet to 20 dump trucks.
In late 2007, he realized the need and potential contracting opportunities for a professional minority trucking company in Central Ohio and applied for his DBE, MBE and EDGE certifications.
Today, Bridges Bros. Trucking, LLC provides dump truck hauling services in the Columbus area surrounding counties for some of Ohio’s largest contractors. Bridges Bros. Trucking employs more than 20 staff employees and brokers to more than 50 independent operators in Central Ohio.
Recently Michael’s sons joined the family business, continuing to build upon the values of hard work, excellence, and quality service which are part of the Bridges legacy of family entrepreneurship.
The success of the company is based upon the visionary leadership of Michael Bridges and the dedicated staff members who have been there from the start. Michael and his sons are currently pursuing additional ventures and expanding their service offerings to ensure the strength of the Bridges brand well into the future.
