Leader Mutual Freight (LMF) welcomed its 45th anniversary with a company banquet on July 1. Corporate leaders toasted to esteemed business partners and colleagues to jointly celebrate the selfless nature of LMF’s client-first mission. As a globally trusted freight forwarder working for a brighter future, we will continue to connect the world with integrity and ceaselessly improve our services.

In her opening remarks at the banquet, LMF President Fanny Chung reminisced about overcoming many incredible challenges during the company’s fledgling days. Mark Lee, now Vice President of LMF’s Taiwan operations, was by her side and together they navigated LMF through many turbulent times. For example, grass carp and bighead carp from Taiwan’s aquaculture industry were once top export items to Hong Kong, while Singapore was buying fertilized duck eggs from Taiwan for seven to eight years before switching over to Thailand. In another unexpected turn of events, Taiwan’s once-thriving swine sales to Vietnam — involving live stud hogs delivered by chartered Boeing 747s — were terminated by an outbreak of hoof-and-mouth (HMD) disease in 1997.

Each incident disrupted trade patterns and impacted our business, she said. Yet when one door closes, inevitably another beckons. In 1997, the same year of the HMD outbreak, an American wholesaler-retailer sought a logistics partner to grow its operations in Taiwan, and LMF had the experience in shipping live animals, plants, and perishables as well as the familiarity with cold-chain solutions. To remain competitive in the global logistics race, LMF has embarked on a never-ending journey of self-improvement and advancement. Our corporate history mirrors the past forty-five years of Taiwanese economic development, adapting to Taiwan’s shifting international relations and the fluid currents of global trade. No one can predict the future demise of prosperous sectors today.

She then quoted the protagonist of “Blossoms Shanghai,” a 2023 Chinese drama series about staying ahead in the business world: “The stock market is always right, I am the fallible factor. My head belongs to me, and my legs go where I tell them to go. However, as long as I am properly prepared, opportunity outweighs the risk!”

She also recounted the four major frontiers cultivated by LMF: first, the agricultural and aquacultural trading of Taiwan and related import-export customs paperwork; second, the semiconductors supply chain as well as the relocation of fabs and chip-making machinery; third, aircraft-on-ground (AOG) emergency services and transportation of parts for aviation and aerospace operators across Europe, the United States, and China; and fourth, the biomedical field that grew even more prominent after the global COVID-19 outbreak.

LMF President Chung admitted that LMF is not always perfect, but when presented with a blunder, our first response should always be — “Approach with humility, learn from mistakes, and remain adaptive.” For “our corporate ethos has secured the trust of a wide-ranging clientele and forged an iron-clad network of partners across the planet. Our ability to evolve in response to the currents of time is embedded in the DNA of LMF, thanks in part to the managerial expertise of Taiwan VP Lee and CEO Allen Cheng,” she added, explaining that the mutual trust and camaraderie at the leadership level have set forth a good example for LMF’s client-first, drama-free corporate culture.

When LMF President Chung invited Taiwan VP Lee and CEO Cheng to join her on stage, Lee remained true to his curt but courteous personality, noting that it would be more pleasing to the crowd if he let CEO Cheng speak for them both. Passing the microphone to Cheng with a quip about “I’m more useful on the battleground of doing business while he’s more eloquent and good at rousing crowds,” Lee demonstrated their solidarity as partners at the helm of LMF.

Lee and Chung were friends before becoming entrepreneurial colleagues who founded the LMF company. Cheng joined the LMF team in 1997 and brought his expertise in aerospace logistics and contacts from the semiconductor sector into the fold. President Chung reiterated how Lee and Cheng are indispensable to her decision-making process and that they form a triumvirate of good management. Their constant endeavors to keep abreast of the latest developments in their respective fields, as well as their selfless contributions in guiding the company, are reflected in LMF’s twin goals of bolstering corporate social responsibility and meeting shareholders’ expectations.

President Chung is certain that the altruistic philosophy that guides her will set a good model of self-improvement and humility for all LMF staffers to come. These are the ethnos inherited by the next generation of successors who will usher this world-class freight forwarder through the inevitable challenges that the prosperous future will hold.