Guest: Alexxander Purcell, DOT Solutions & Support Engineer

Industry: Trucking / Logistics / Compliance

Company: Verified First

Focus: FMCSA compliance, audit readiness, safety management, owner-operator success

Specialty: DOT-regulated fleets, safety consulting, freight operations, small business coaching

✅ Alexxander breaks down how truckers can get blacklisted with freight guard reports—and how one bad broker review can sideline you for months.

✅ Hear how he ran a business for five years while paying 20% in merchant fees, just to keep credit card payments flowing.

✅ Discover the truth behind gross vs. net revenue in trucking—and why drivers who think they’re being underpaid might be missing the real math.

✅ Alexxander shares brutally honest advice for aspiring entrepreneurs: “If you’re not ready to lose everything, don’t do it.”

✅ Learn about the chargeback trap—how rendering services doesn’t mean you’ll get paid, especially when the customer's spouse disputes the charge.

✅ He’s consulted over 3,000 trucking companies and reveals the most common myths, mistakes, and margin misconceptions in the industry.

✅ A candid discussion on generational privilege, market access, and why today’s “too many choices” can be just as paralyzing as yesterday’s scarcity.

✅ Personal reflections on entrepreneurship, family, legacy, and the grandmother he wishes he could’ve sought advice from before it all began.

In this raw and no-BS episode of The Innovators Impact, Darnell Perkins sits down with Alexxander Purcell, a DOT compliance expert and trucking industry veteran, to explore the real-life trenches of entrepreneurship in logistics. With a background that includes homelessness, merchant rejection, and paying sky-high processing fees just to stay afloat, Alexxander opens up about what it actually takes to build—and survive—in the freight world.

From helping thousands of owner-operators to guiding them through the gritty realities of FMCSA audits and financial pitfalls, Alexxander emphasizes the cost of ambition. He shares battle-tested lessons on why most people misunderstand profit margins in trucking, the dangers of underestimating overhead, and the emotional toll of trying to go solo in a brutal industry.

Whether you’re scaling a fleet, thinking of becoming an owner-operator, or simply curious about what business looks like when no one hands you the keys, this episode is a masterclass in resilience, clarity, and hard-won wisdom.

Q: What’s the biggest misconception truckers have about starting their own company?

A: That they’ll keep the gross. In reality, after costs, they may make less than when they were a company driver.

Q: How do freight guard reports impact drivers?

A: They can blacklist you with brokers for months—with no appeal process.

Q: What should people know about merchant accounts?

A: Just getting one can be a nightmare. Alexxander paid 20% in fees for years because mainstream banks shut him out.

Q: Why do most first-time entrepreneurs fail?

A: They underestimate the emotional, financial, and personal toll. You need full commitment—or it’ll break you.

Q: Is it easier to succeed today than for past generations?

A: Yes—and no. Today you have tools and access, but so many options can be just as paralyzing as no options at...