NATCHEZ — Even after receiving one of Natchez-Adams County’s two 2017 large business awards, the sibling duo that owns Jordan Carriers have no intention of slowing down.

Charles and Doug Jordan head the hauling operation, and though 25 years of hard work have made their company a success, the brothers prefer looking ahead rather than reflecting on past accomplishments.

“I kind of prefer to fly under the radar,” Charles said.

Charles started the company in 1992 with he and Doug’s father, Kenneth Jordan. The pair purchased a single truck and soon after attracted their first customer.

Today, the company owns 400 trucks and serves 200 customers, and the brothers expect to reach 500 trucks by the end of next year.

Jordan Carriers hauls materials for manufacturing companies, with customers from Texas, Pennsylvania, Florida, and all in between.

The two conceded that neither they nor their father knew anything about trucking when they entered the industry. But through the work ethic instilled by their father, Charles and Doug found their way.

“Dad was a good role model, but when we started, he or I, or Doug … had any idea of what to do in the trucking business. It’s probably only through God’s grace that we’re in business,” Charles said with a laugh. “But we just persevered and just worked a lot of hours.”

Doug said at one point he did not take a vacation day for 10 years, crediting his father for helping to guide he and Charles.

“(Dad) was a great teacher,” Doug said.

Charles and Doug lost their father in April 2014, but they have done him proud through their efforts with the business.

They estimated that since 2014, Jordan Carriers has doubled in size, and the brothers hope to double again within the next few years.

The key to Jordan’s success, Charles and Doug said, is simple: the employees.

Charles said of all the issues facing a trucking company, finding competent, qualified truck drivers tops the list.

While Charles said drivers are difficult to come by, that makes him all the more thankful for every one of the company’s 485 employees.

“We’ve had a lot of really good, dedicated employees,” Charles said. “That’s one of our main success stories right there.”

Many of those employees, Doug said, have been around for years. One man that has been around throughout the journey is Jake Woods.

Currently the company’s general manager, Woods was part of the handful of men who drove Jordan’s first truck.

“I’ve seen a lot,” he said. “To start with no trucks and end up with 400 or whatever it is now (is great).”

The Jordan brothers remain modest in their accomplishments, though they do acknowledge how their willingness to be different and “change the game” has led them to achieve success.

For example, Doug said one of the business’ biggest boons came 20 years ago, when Charles had the idea that would change the way trucking companies did business.

“We were the first ones in the industry to have a 53-foot aluminum flatbeds,” Doug said. “All aluminum. We had a manufacturer build them because of a customer’s need in Dallas. Now you look up and they’re everywhere.”

Doug called that aspect of the business, the affordance of being different and taking chances, the most rewarding part of his job.

Both Charles and Doug said they truly enjoy the “grind” of the hauling industry. And while that grind has been “never-ending” over the course of 25 years in the business, the Jordans remain as energized as ever.

“It’s a fun business,” Charles said. “Once people get into it, they can’t get out.”