It is scary to enter any industry that has already been established, the shipping industry is one of these industries that has been around for decades and contains countless competitors. Even with all of the big shipping companies that are already established, Brian Ladin took a leap of faith and decided to create a shipping business that was able to fill the gaps within the industry. He began creating a company that would provide the shipping industry with asset leasing opportunities. In 2008 Brian founded Delos Shipping, a platform that lets you lease ships as well as a provider of maritime assets and financing for end users. The concept that Brian used to create a major business has led to countless large transactions and acquisitions.Â
His first introduction to the shipping industry was when he made a small investment in the shipping industry, eventually he ended up increasing how much he was investing until he was primarily involved in shipping. Once some time passed he created an infrastructure for his business which would allow him to lease shipping assets to end users. This concept was new to the industry which would usually inspire fear and doubt, but Brian says that from the beginning he had no doubt that his idea would work and all it took was consistent hard work and persistence.
In order to attract customers and create publicity, he presents his business at industry conferences and spends anywhere from 100-150 days a year on the road meeting with prospective clients. As a company they make sure that Delos can meet each customer’s requirements before they even start conducting business with them. This type of business is hypersensitive and rigorous, they must make sure that each client is financially stable enough to maintain a long term lease before agreeing to do business with them. They are a progressive business that finds new and better ways to manage vessels, they are now primarily focused on sale leaseback opportunities. As for the future of Delos Shipping, Brian plans to increase their portfolio of sale leasebacks diversified by many different vessel types, such as tankers, dry bulk, cruise and containers. The vision that Brian has for Delos Shipping is ambitious but he knows that by being as productive everyday as possible, never letting any setbacks slow him down, and using his resources to keep him organized and educated he will be able to reach all the goals that he has created for himself. There is no concrete tips that he could give that would make his audience successful except that they need to work hard and stay focused. By doing those two things he is able to get up everyday and lead Delos Shipping towards more success.
