Atlas World Group, Inc. is a

privately owned A privately held company (or simply a private company) is a company whose shares and related rights or obligations are not offered for public subscription or publicly negotiated in the respective listed markets, but rather the company's stock is ...

company in the moving and storage industry headquartered in

Evansville, Indiana Evansville is a city in, and the county seat of, Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States. The population was 118,414 at the 2020 census, making it the state's third-most populous city after Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, the largest city in ...

. Founded in 1948, Atlas holds the position as the 11th largest private company in the state. Atlas World Group is the parent and holding company of Atlas Van Lines, Inc. and eight other subsidiary companies that offer transportation, storage, and related relocation services on a global scale through its network of agents and service partners. Service areas include consumer relocation, corporate relocation, government and military services, international relocation, and

logistics Logistics is generally the detailed organization and implementation of a complex operation. In a general business sense, logistics manages the flow of goods between the point of origin and the point of consumption to meet the requirements of ...

. Atlas World Group's flagship company, Atlas Van Lines, is an

agent-owned company An agent-owned company is a private company, controlled by its agents, for which it provides common marketing and business coordination. It is common in the moving company sector, where moves are performed by local agents, under a national brand. ...

and similar in form to a

cooperative A cooperative (also known as co-operative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically-contro ...

. It has about 500 agents worldwide (in over 140 countries), of which 75 own shares in Atlas World Group. Atlas Van Lines is the second-largest interstate motor carrier in the United States.

History

Atlas traces its roots to 1948, when a group of 33 entrepreneurs formed a cooperative for interstate transportation of household goods. The group took the name "Atlas Van Lines" and opened a new headquarters building in Evansville, Indiana. The company changed ownership structure in the 1980s when it offered stock to the public. After a hostile takeover attempt, the company returned to ownership by its agents in 1988. Atlas expanded rapidly in the 1990s and established Atlas World Group as the holding company for Atlas Van Lines, Inc. and seven subsidiaries. In 1996 Atlas purchased

Red Ball Corporation American Red Ball is a moving company operating worldwide. It was founded in Indianapolis in 1919 as American Red Ball Transit Co. Inc. In 1996, owners Walter and AliceJo Saubert sold the company to Atlas World Group. At the time it was the 13th ...

, the 13th largest household mover in the United States at the time, including its two subsidiaries: American Red Ball International, an

international freight forwarder A freight forwarder, or forwarding agent, is a person or company who, for a fee organizes shipments for individuals or corporations to get goods from the manufacturer or producer to a market, customer or final point of distribution.

based in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

, and American Red Ball Transit Co. based in

Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of U.S. state and territorial capitals, state capital and List of U.S. states' largest cities by population, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat, seat of ...

. Red Ball specialized in the moves of US military personnel. In 2001, Atlas sold American Red Ball Transit, the domestic subsidiary, to its management. In 1997 the company added Atlantic Relocation Systems (more than 600 vehicles) and Bekins Northwest (more than 250). In 2000, Atlas purchased a controlling interest in Cornerstone Relocation Group, a full service global relocation management company based in Basking Ridge, New Jersey, expanding global relocation services to corporate transportation clients. In 2020, Atlas won a three-year contract from the

United States Transportation Command The United States Transportation Command (USTRANSCOM) is one of eleven unified combatant commands of the United States Department of Defense. The command is located at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, and was established in 1987. The USTRANSCO ...

valued at nearly $7.2 billion for all global relocation services for the

United States Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD or DOD) is an executive branch department of the federal government charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government directly related to national secur ...

and the

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mu ...

service members, their families, and Department of Defense civilians.

Subsidiaries

Atlas Van Lines, the Atlas World Group's flagship company , was founded by a group of 33 moving companies referred to as agents. Atlas is still distinguished by its agent ownership to this day and is represented by nearly 500 Atlas agents across the world. Atlas Van Lines is the second largest carrier of

household goods Household goods are goods and products used within households. They are the tangible and movable personal property placed in the rooms of a house, such as a bed or refrigerator. Economic role Businesses that produce household goods are categorize ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

. The moving company is headquartered in

Evansville, IN Evansville is a city in, and the county seat of, Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States. The population was 118,414 at the 2020 census, making it the state's third-most populous city after Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, the largest city i ...

. Atlas Van Lines Canada is the cross-border sister company of Atlas Van Lines in full operation since 1963. Headquartered in

Oakville, Ontario Oakville is a town in Halton Region, Ontario, Canada. It is located on Lake Ontario between Toronto and Hamilton. At its 2021 census population of 213,759, it is Ontario's largest town. Oakville is part of the Greater Toronto Area, one of t ...

, there are 150 agents throughout

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

. In

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...

, Atlas Van Lines International, Inc. handles international relocations for corporate professionals,

military service Military service is service by an individual or group in an army or other militia, air forces, and naval forces, whether as a chosen job ( volunteer) or as a result of an involuntary draft ( conscription). Some nations (e.g., Mexico) requ ...

members,

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government ...

personnel, as well as their families. In 2015, the company was shortlisted for Best International Moving Company of the Year by the U.S. Expatriate Management and Mobility Awards. Atlas Logistics, Inc. in Evansville is the commercial

arm of Atlas World Group. In operation since 1970, Atlas Logistics provides

supply chain management In commerce, supply chain management (SCM) is the management of the flow of goods and services including all processes that transform raw materials into final products between businesses and locations. This can include the movement and sto ...

, freight brokerage, padded van transportation, and

project management Project management is the process of leading the work of a team to achieve all project goals within the given constraints. This information is usually described in project documentation, created at the beginning of the development process. T ...

with a specialization in

retail Retail is the sale of goods and services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturers, directly or through a wholesaler, and th ...

hospitality Hospitality is the relationship between a guest and a host, wherein the host receives the guest with some amount of goodwill, including the reception and entertainment of guests, visitors, or strangers. Louis de Jaucourt, Louis, chevalier de J ...

, healthcare, and fine art industries. Titan Global Distribution handles project management out of

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, whic ...

. Avail Move Management in Evansville, formed in 2003, focuses on third-party relocation management services. Other subsidiaries include Cornerstone Relocation Group, Atlas Terminal Company, and Atlas World-Class Travel.

References

External links

Official Website
{{Trucking industry in the United States Storage companies Companies based in Evansville, Indiana Privately held companies of the United States Moving companies of the United States Agent-owned companies Transport companies established in 1948 1948 establishments in Indiana