1979

1 location

Expeditors International of Washington, Inc. registers as a single office ocean forwarder in Seattle. John Kaiser (a former Harper Group executive) is at the helm. 

1981

6 locations

Founders Peter Rose, James Wang, Kevin Walsh, Hank Wong, George Ho, Robert Chiarito, and Glenn Alger join the company with a focus that is new to the industry: a one-stop shop for door-to-door transportation and customs brokerage services. Additional offices are established in San Francisco, Chicago, Hong Kong, Taipei, and Singapore. Expeditors quickly becomes one of the largest U.S.-based forwarders of air freight from the Far East.

1988

Peter J. Rose, one of the founders, assumes the title of President and CEO.

1990

32 locations | 900 employees

Selective global expansion continues with the opening of a Brussels office, the first company office in continental Europe. New slogan is introduced to reinforce our commitment to customer service: You'd be surprised how far we'll go for you.

1991 

Our net earnings top $10 million ($10,196,000). We formalize an internal quality program called EXCEL (Expeditors Commitment to Excellence and Leadership), built on a goal of 100% customer satisfaction 100% of the time.

1996

Expeditors names a Director of Quality and formalizes its global pursuit of ISO9001 certification. A total of 27 offices are ISO9001 certified as five more offices achieve the accreditation in Asia and Europe. The number of employees tops 3000. Offices are opened in India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. The class “A” license held in Beijing is extended to four more major Chinese trading points, bringing our total offices in China to eight. While its employees are recognized as the best trained in the industry, Expeditors raises its minimum annual training requirement for employees from 30 hours to 52 hours per year, in recognition of the increasingly sophisticated needs of its customers.

1998

149 locations | 5,215 employees

Gross revenues top a record $1 billion. New global headquarters opens in downtown Seattle, Washington.

2002

195 locations | 8,000 employees 

Expeditors views its role in the future of international trade as the preferred global logistics solutions company. The company will continue to satisfy its customers’ needs through a responsive, highly-trained workforce, integrated information systems, and a global network. Expeditors is named to the NASDAQ 100. A number of milestones are reached with more than $2 billion in gross

2004

Numerous milestones mark our 25th year: Gross revenues top a record $3 billion ($3,317,499,000); net earnings reach $156,126,000; and employee count surpasses 9,000.

2009

Over 250 locations | 12,010 employees 

We’re still standing. The global economic climate of the past year has affected many, yet we remained consistent in our commitment to customer service and financial stability. We protected our biggest assets - our people - with no layoffs. This year we opened our Disaster Recovery Center in Spokane, Washington, where all global backup IT requirements are facilitated. 2009 was also a big year for our Environmental Teams worldwide as they work on green initiatives across the Company; a sustainable, green office was built in Frankfurt for our German Regional Headquarters.

2010

Considered our best year ever, 2010 started off well and ended terrific. The main reason for such a successful year is predicated on one large factor....our no layoff policy. Protecting our greatest assets proved invaluable, as those same people were the ones delivering world class customer service day after day. Without them, our success would not be possible. We continue to create tools and enhance our systems in order to improve internal processes and meet customer needs.

2017

Over 300 locations | 15,400 employees

A year of strong innovation, 2017 was kicked off with the appointment of a Chief Strategy Officer to establish and oversee a Strategy group of highly experienced individuals to explore new areas of opportunity. Later the company announced the launch of a new subsidiary, Cargo Signal, which brings new levels of supply chain control and visibility through digital services powered by a proprietary, sensor-based logistics system and a 24x7x365 Global Command Center staffed with seasoned professionals trained in risk management, logistics, and supply chain security.

2018

Continuing the innovation streak, in collaboration with our customer Walmart, Expeditors announced the launch of a new cutting-edge Carrier Allocation platform to provide an advanced level of forecasting and planning to revolutionize supply chains and transportation efficiency.