Leaving her nursing career at the age of 19 to start up Angel Transport with her father was a leap of faith for Ayna Amina, but she never doubted her decision.
From small beginnings with three trucks in 2005, today Angel
Transport is an Auckland-wide freight company and operates a fleet of 38 vehicles, from vans through to truck and trailer units and hiab flat-decks.
Ayna was recognised for her passion and commitment with the ‘Outstanding Contribution by a Woman in the Road Transport Industry‘ award in 2019 at the New Zealand Road Transport Industry Awards.
As a third party logistics operator, Angel Transport services the Auckland region and also undertakes urgent deliveries throughout the North Island.
“The specialty of our business it that we are not signed into contracts with customers. Every day is a new day and we don‘t know what will happen. All the trucks run on an hourly rate,” Ayna explains.
In her role as General Manager, Ayna handles dispatch, payroll, accounts, customer service and queries, and even drives.
It‘s taken time to convince them, but all of her siblings (two brothers and one sister) have now joined the family-owned and operated business.
“When I was 19 dad came to me and said he wanted to start his own business. I didn‘t know a thing about trucks at that moment, so he sent me out with the drivers to learn about freight.
“It was a personal decision, I couldn‘t say no to my father! Of his four kids he chose me and the thought he had the confidence to start a new venture with me, I said hey, I‘ll do it. I had faith in my dad. He was a businessman back in Fiji and had the attitude he wanted to own what he was doing.”
Angel Transport takes pride in living up to its name and providing quality service. “I had a customer last week say the name Angel goes with the service provided. We are not bound by contracts and work around all of our customers‘ expectations.”
Using MyTrucking, in conjunction with EROAD, has enhanced the efficiency and capability of the business, she says.
Being able to pre-load jobs is a massive benefit, along with making sure no jobs are missed and are entered quickly into the system.
“The flexibility of being able to log into the system from anywhere is the beauty of it. I‘m driving, I park up and load up a job immediately. The simplicity of MyTrucking has given us a lot of freedom and time to work on other parts of the business. I can send a POD from my phone in my lounge, that‘s how simple it is.”
Even the drivers love MyTrucking, she says. “The driver‘s app is amazing. PODs are crucial with freighting companies. We get paid through PODs – no POD, no pay. Now the drivers can take a photo and upload it as soon as a job is complete.”
Ayna enjoys the relationships she has built with the MyTrucking team, and the service provided. “They are only a phone call away, always there. We really appreciate Sara and the team.”
Favourite truck? I don‘t drive trucks but from talking to my dad, we prefer Mitsubishi, all day, every day! We started with a Mitsubishi truck and you can‘t go wrong.
Favourite place to get a pie? The local bakeries.
Favourite MyTrucking feature? Being able to log in anywhere, anytime, it‘s the best.
Favourite gearbox? 100% Roadrangers, nobody likes autos.
Favourite way to acknowledge a truckie? We acknowledge them by promotion, helping drivers to achieve a higher level of class license, and putting them in that truck. Personally, if I wanted to acknowledge a driver of another company I‘d note the rego and give the feedback to the company. At the end of the day, driving trucks is not easy – the heat, pressure and stress. Just a little comment to the dispatcher is great.
Favourite saying or catchphrase? In life – everything happens for a reason. In business – we commit, we deliver.
