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I’ve always felt that one of the best things about CLDA is the people. I’ve seen firsthand how a conversation at an event, a round of golf, or even a little friendly competition can turn into a lasting relationship or a new business opportunity. That’s a big part of what makes Final Mile Forum special, and it’s why I’m particularly excited about what we have planned for Orlando in February.
2027 marks CLDA’s 40th anniversary, and an opportunity to celebrate how far we’ve come as an organization while focusing on what matters most to our members today: building relationships, finding new opportunities, and growing their businesses.
Our committees and staff have been working hard to put together a program that delivers real value, from educational sessions designed to help members expand into new markets to networking experiences that bring people together in ways a traditional conference simply can’t.
And some of the experiences I’m most excited about will happen before the conference officially begins.
One of my favorite things about Final Mile Forum is the opportunity to get to know members outside the traditional meeting setting. Some of the strongest relationships that have been built in this industry started during conversations away from the conference rooms and our preconference events are designed to create exactly those opportunities.
Fastest Courier Challenge
Anyone who knows me knows I’m a big Formula 1 fan. Last year, I participated in the Fastest Courier Challenge at Circuit of the Americas (COTA), and it was honestly one of the coolest experiences I’ve ever been a part of. Beyond the thrill of racing, I made some fantastic connections with fellow members that have continued well beyond the event.
This year, we’re moving the competition to the Orlando Kart Center, and from what I’ve seen, this track could make things even more interesting. Orlando’s Silverstone layout is nearly two-tenths of a mile longer per lap, with faster, sweeping corners and a 170-meter straightaway where drivers will have a real opportunity to race side by side. It’s also a longer, more demanding track, with faster cars and more excitement. As a racing fan, that’s exactly the kind of competition I want to be part of… and you don’t have to be a race expert to have a great time, in fact crashing might be the best part. If you’ve got a sense of adventure and want to make some new connections, I’d highly recommend joining us on the track.
Golf Outing
I also love a good round of golf, and there’s a reason golf has always been such a big part of doing business. Whether you’re an experienced golfer or someone who only picks up the clubs a few times a year, spending a few hours on the course gives you a chance to really get to know people.
The conversations, friendly competition, and shared experiences often lead to lasting relationships. And at CLDA, those relationships can turn into real business opportunities.
Women in Logistics Brunch
Another event I’m especially excited for is our Women in Logistics Brunch which enters it’s second year at FMF27.
I’ve had the opportunity to be involved in the planning process, and it’s given me an even greater appreciation for the importance of this event.
Logistics has historically been a male-dominated industry, and creating a space where women can speak openly about their experiences, challenges, and opportunities is incredibly valuable. It’s an opportunity to share perspectives, build meaningful connections, and support one another’s professional growth. I’m excited to see this event continue to grow.
Of course, these events are just the beginning.
Throughout FMF27, we’re putting a strong emphasis on helping members find new opportunities to grow their businesses. Our educational programming and networking experiences will focus on expanding into new markets, developing new relationships, navigating industry challenges, and identifying opportunities across the logistics supply chain.
We’re also creating more opportunities for meaningful interaction between carriers, shippers, industry partners, and the people who can help take your business to the next level.
There’s much more to share, and I’m looking forward to highlighting some of the exciting programming and experiences we have planned as February approaches.
If you haven’t renewed your CLDA membership for 2027, now is a great time to do so. Members who renew and register for FMF27 by November 30 can take advantage of our special $995 registration rate, saving $700 compared to the non-member price.
Forty years is quite a milestone, and I can’t think of a better way to celebrate than bringing our industry together to build relationships, create opportunities, and look toward the next 40 years.
Renew your membership, register for FMF27, and join us in Orlando for what promises to be a memorable celebration!
Renew or Join CLDA | Register for FMF27
Michael Wright
CLDA Executive Director
Fall is officially here, but things are heating up here at CLDA. In a little over a week we will be in Scottsdale Arizona for the next installment of our in-person regional networking series – CONNECT AZ. Join CLDA and Openforce on October 8, 2026 as we take over Sophia’s Kitchen for a great night of networking and education.
A little over two weeks ago we officially launched registration for the 2027 Final Mile Forum (FMF27) which will be held February 10-12 at the Hilton Orlando Lake Buena Vista in Orlando, FL. We’ve lowered the price of registration since last year and come up with an extra special offer that’s almost too good to be true. Join CLDA or renew your membership and register for FMF27 by November 30,2026 and save a total of $700 off of the non-member price.
Our staff has been hard at work alongside the FMF27 Committee, Education Committee, Marketing Committee and Shipper Task Force to make this year’s event something truly special.
2027 marks CLDA’s 40th anniversary, and we’re building a Final Mile Forum worthy of the occasion. FMF27 will bring together the people, ideas and opportunities that move the final-mile industry forward, with an expanded lineup of education, new structured networking experiences and more ways to connect with the partners who can help grow your business. From entering new markets and verticals to building stronger relationships with carriers, shippers and industry partners, this year’s Forum is being designed around creating real opportunities for our members.
For our Affiliate members, sponsors and industry partners, we’re also rethinking what sponsorship can look like. New year-round partnerships, event packages and standalone opportunities give your company more ways to stay visible, engage directly with attendees and put your brand at the center of the FMF27 experience. Go beyond a logo on a sign. Put your brand behind one of our signature pre-conference events, like the high-energy Fastest Courier Challenge or our second annual Women in Logistics Brunch. Create a destination attendees will seek out with experiences like the Paws & Relax Puppy Lounge or the Final Mile Rest Stop Massage Lounge. These opportunities are designed to create interaction, generate conversation and give attendees a reason to remember who made the experience possible.
With new programming, new ways to connect and plenty of surprises planned for our 40th anniversary, FMF27 is shaping up to be a Final Mile Forum you won’t want to miss.
Michael Wright
CLDA Executive Director
There’s a lot happening at CLDA as we head into the fall, and I’m excited about what’s coming next.
Final Mile Forum registration will be opening very soon. We’re ironing out the last few details now, and when registration goes live, I encourage you to take advantage of our special Early Bird pricing and register by November 30.
We have a lot of new things in store for FMF27. One of the additions I’m most excited about is our new event app, which will allow attendees to create profiles, connect with other guests, schedule meetings, build their event experience, and much more. The app launches on November 12, but access is only available to registered attendees, so register early and be among the first to get onboard.
We’re also rolling out new pricing and incentives for registration and sponsorship, along with a strong lineup of educational topics and even more opportunities to connect and do business with others in the industry. We’re putting a lot of energy into making FMF27 one of the best Final Mile Forums we’ve had in years, and I really hope to see you there.
We also have more education coming your way before then. Following the strong response to our recent pharmaceutical courier compliance webinar, the next installment of the CLDA & CXT Webinar Series is scheduled for September 30 at 1:00 PM ET. Watch the CLDA website and our weekly emails for registration details coming soon.
And if February still feels too far away, you won’t have to wait that long for your next chance to connect with CLDA in person. Our next CLDA CONNECT event will be held in the Scottsdale, Arizona area on October 8. Stay tuned to the CLDA website and our weekly emails for all the details.
There’s a lot more to come over the next several months, and I’m looking forward to sharing it with you.
Michael Wright
CLDA Executive Director
Every so often, a piece of legislation comes along that may start as a local issue but has the potential to reshape the way our industry does business far beyond one city or state. New York City’s Intro 0518-2026 is one of those bills.
At first glance, Intro 518 can sound like another debate over independent contractors and worker classification. But that doesn’t really capture what is at stake.
As currently written, the bill would require workers performing certain warehouse and delivery functions to be directly employed by the operator of the last-mile facility. It would also significantly restrict the ability of those facilities to contract with third-party delivery companies to perform that work. Importantly, this can affect delivery companies even when their drivers are already W-2 employees.
That is a major distinction, and it is why CLDA is paying close attention.
Our industry is built around partnerships. Shippers, retailers, healthcare organizations, manufacturers and countless other businesses rely on professional delivery companies because those companies bring expertise, geographic reach, technology, specialized services and the ability to scale with their customers.
Intro 518 could disrupt those relationships by effectively determining which company is allowed to employ the workers performing the delivery work.
For a CLDA member that has spent years building a business, hiring and training employees, investing in technology and developing customer relationships, this is much more than a technical change in employment law. A compliant delivery company could potentially lose the ability to serve a customer simply because that customer operates a facility covered by the law.
And offering some of those employees jobs with another company does not preserve the business that employed them in the first place. It does not preserve its management team, customer relationships, company culture or every existing position.
The New York Delivers Coalition has pointed to independent analysis estimating that Intro 518 could put more than 10,000 New York City jobs at risk, affect hundreds of locally owned delivery businesses and increase costs for consumers and small businesses.
There are operational concerns as well.
New York City’s delivery network is regional. If companies respond to the law by moving facilities or operations outside the five boroughs, the deliveries themselves don’t disappear. Those packages still need to reach homes, hospitals, offices, retailers and businesses throughout New York City.
They may simply have to travel farther to get there.
In Queens, which has the city’s largest concentration of identified large delivery facilities, operations could potentially shift to Long Island, New Jersey or elsewhere in the region. That could mean longer routes, more vehicle miles and additional congestion while also disrupting existing relationships between local delivery companies and their customers.
That is exactly the kind of unintended consequence policymakers should be considering before dramatically changing how an entire delivery network operates.
This is the part I think every CLDA member should be watching.
Intro 518 may be a New York City proposal today, but regulatory ideas do not stay inside municipal boundaries.
We have already seen how worker-classification policies can move from one jurisdiction to another. Intro 518 takes a different approach. Instead of focusing primarily on whether an individual worker qualifies as an employee or an independent contractor, it goes directly at the relationship between the customer, the facility and the delivery company.
During our recent Government Affairs Committee discussion, members compared the potential impact to California’s AB 5, but through a different mechanism. One focuses on classification standards. The other can restrict who is permitted to perform the work in the first place.
If that approach takes hold and begins to appear elsewhere, the implications for our industry could be substantial.
Imagine operating in several markets and having different rules in each city governing whether your customers are even allowed to contract with your company. Imagine a shipper being forced to bring a specialized delivery operation in-house even though an experienced local carrier already performs that work safely and responsibly.
That is why CLDA views this as more than a New York issue.
CLDA supports meaningful standards for workplace safety, training, insurance, employee protections and responsible business practices.
But achieving those goals should not require dismantling legitimate partnerships between shippers and responsible delivery companies.
There are ways to address misclassification, unsafe practices, inadequate insurance, wage violations and other legitimate concerns without eliminating compliant businesses that employ people, serve their communities and provide essential delivery services. That is the conversation we believe policymakers should be having.
CLDA recently signed a letter supporting the New York Delivers Coalition’s efforts opposing Intro 0518-2026. Our Government Affairs Committee also voted to support the coalition effort and discussed giving individual CLDA member companies the opportunity to add their voices as well.
If your company does business in New York City, I strongly encourage you to take a few minutes to learn more and get involved. Even if you are not currently operating in New York, I encourage you to follow this issue because the precedent it creates could eventually affect delivery companies in markets across the country.
You can learn more about the New York Delivers Coalition and sign the petition opposing Intro 518 here:
https://www.nydeliverscoalition.org/take-action
CLDA will continue monitoring Intro 518, working with our industry partners and advocating for policies that protect workers while allowing responsible delivery companies to continue doing what they do best: keeping businesses, communities and the economy moving.
Michael Wright
CLDA Executive Director
If you are reading this, chances are you made it to the bottom of our Monthly Movement newsletter and I salute you! If you are reading this on the blog, let me catch you up.
CLDA is coming off a very productive stretch. We recently held our strategic planning session, our second quarter Board of Directors meeting, and a highly successful CONNECT PHL event. Each of these moments reinforced the same thing: CLDA has real momentum, and we have a committed group of volunteer leaders, committee members, and staff working hard to make this association more valuable, more accessible, and more impactful for our members.
Across the organization, our focus is clear. We are working to deliver more education, stronger networking, and meaningful advocacy that supports the companies and professionals who make up the final-mile industry.
I am especially excited to announce that our next CLDA CONNECT event will be held in Scottsdale, Arizona, in partnership with OpenForce. We are still fine-tuning the details and will share more information soon, but for now, please mark Thursday, October 8, on your calendar. This will be another great opportunity to connect with fellow members, industry partners, and CLDA leadership.
Preparations for Final Mile Forum 2027 are well underway, and we cannot wait to see you in Orlando. This year marks the 40th anniversary of CLDA, and we are pulling out all the stops.
Regina Robuck will be reaching out soon with new sponsorship opportunities designed to help members and partners highlight their brands in front of the CLDA community. Bridget Sears, our Events Director, along with the FMF Committee, is planning a schedule that will knock your socks off. You can expect old favorites, exciting new additions, and even more opportunities to interact with members, build your network, and grow your business.
Registration opens in just a few weeks with special early bird pricing and early access to our brand-new conference app. The app will be loaded with new features to help registered attendees connect with one another before they even arrive in Orlando. It will only be available to registered guests, and if you are not registered when the app launches, you may miss out on some major opportunities to make valuable connections.
If ever there was a year to attend Final Mile Forum, this is the year.
There is so much more I can’t wait to share, but all in good time. For now, thank you for your continued involvement, support, and belief in what CLDA is building. We have a lot ahead of us, and I am excited to keep moving forward together.
Michael Wright
CLDA Executive Director
Just like that, six months have passed since I stepped into the role of Executive Director of CLDA.
I continue to be grateful for the opportunity to serve this association alongside such a dedicated group of volunteer leaders and a truly outstanding staff team. Over the past six months, I have had the pleasure of getting to know many of our members and learning more each day about the industry you have built your businesses and careers around. It has only deepened my appreciation for the work you do and the value CLDA can bring to this community.
If we have not yet had the chance to meet in person, I hope to see you on July 9 at CONNECT PHL. As a South Jersey native with a father who was born and raised in Philadelphia, I am especially excited to welcome CLDA members to my corner of the country. I encourage you to stay for the weekend, explore our nation’s first capital, enjoy the food and history of Philadelphia, or head down to the Jersey Shore, where I grew up. I may be biased, but I will put the Jersey Shore in July up against just about anywhere. If you are planning to come in and want recommendations, send me a note. I would be glad to point you in the right direction.
There is a lot taking shape at CLDA, and I am excited to share more as the year continues. For now, here are a few highlights and a look at what is ahead.
First, MOVEMENT by CLDA and its sister publication, DISPATCH, are being released to the world. Since my first week on the job, I have looked forward to improving and streamlining CLDA’s email communications. MOVEMENT will be our monthly, members-only hub for CLDA updates, educational features, member opportunities, and association news. DISPATCH, our weekly newsletter, will focus on timely industry updates, advocacy matters, and the information you need to stay informed from week to week.
We are also making meaningful progress in advocacy. CLDA continues to work on behalf of our members to help shape policy, influence important conversations in Washington, and protect the way this industry does business. One thing I have learned quickly is that advocacy is often most successful when members do not have to feel its impact every day. But that does not mean the threats are not real. Issues affecting independent contractor models, transportation operations, labor rules, and regulatory compliance continue to move quickly, and CLDA needs engaged members helping to carry that message forward.
I encourage you to consider supporting CLDA’s advocacy work with a monthly donation here. I also invite you to consider applying to join the Government Affairs Committee. The best time to get involved is before an issue reaches your doorstep.
In education, we have updated our internal member education portal with new navigation and video content, and we are working on several new initiatives for 2027. More details will be shared soon, but this is an area where I believe CLDA can continue to provide real, practical value to members year-round.
Finally, I am very excited about what is ahead for Final Mile Forum 2027 in Orlando. It is still a little early to share everything, but I can say with confidence that we are building something special. Our goal is to make FMF 2027 one of the strongest, most valuable, and most talked-about CLDA events in years. Registration is just around the corner, so keep an eye on your inbox.
Thank you again for the warm welcome, the candid feedback, and the continued commitment so many of you bring to CLDA. I look forward to seeing you soon.
Michael Wright
CLDA Executive Director
