Wolf&Grayson EditorialWarehouse on Wheels (WoW) is a family of regional trailer rental providers across North America, offering over 37,000 trailers for storage, cartage, and over-the-road use. Serving industries such as manufacturing, warehousing and distribution and retail it provides safe, dry, and flexible mobile storage solutions designed to meet urgent space needs. In rethinking warehouse space, WoW’s CEO Jonathan N. Brooks has helped his customers collectively save over $100 million in the past year alone.
“When you strip away the jargon and complexity, it’s about solving real problems for real people, fast,” says Brooks, whose novel model offers a highly cost-effective alternative to traditional warehouse space. WoW’s storage trailers give companies the flexibility to scale up or down without being tied to long-term leases. “Our solution is typically four times less expensive on a per-square-foot basis than fixed warehouse space,” Brooks says. “And because it’s based on 30-day evergreen contracts, our customers aren’t forced into five or ten-year commitments.”
Such flexibility has become invaluable in a business climate facing uncertainty. From tariff shifts to increasingly unpredictable weather patterns, forecasting storage needs, even with sophisticated models and data, remains a challenge. “You’re not sitting here today thinking that in March of next year you’ll need 100 storage trailers because a shipment’s going to be late or a hurricane will hit,” Brooks says. “You need that solution when you need it. That’s where we come in.” With a network capable of delivering a trailer within hours, what Brooks jokingly calls “pizza delivery speed,” WoW ensures clients’ operations keep moving even when the unexpected hits. And if something goes wrong, the team is back on-site within hours to make repairs and minimize downtime.
From Customer to Industry Leader
The idea for WoW came from Brooks’s own experience in day-to-day warehouse operations. “I was a customer,” he recalls. “I was running a warehouse for a small family-owned business that imported a couple hundred containers a year. We were bursting at the seams.” One night, while looking at a lot filled with rented trailers, he realized he was staring at a business opportunity. “I started thinking about the economics and saw a fragmented industry dominated by small, family-run companies. There was room for a better, more professional model.”
In 2018, Brooks launched WoW with just two locations and 4,000 trailers. Today, the company has nearly 40 locations and 40,000 trailers, having completed more than 25 acquisitions and expanded organically by another 10,000+ trailers. That rapid growth, achieved without sacrificing service quality, is a testament to his commitment to building a company where service, people, and mission align.
“Ritz-Carlton Service at a Hampton Inn Price”
While the logistics world often focuses on scale, Brooks emphasizes people. His approach to service and leadership is deeply human. “Our go-to-market strategy is simple,” he says. “Ritz-Carlton service at a Hampton Inn price.” Each of WoW’s locations is led by what Brooks calls a “local market CEO,” empowered to make operational decisions for their 150-mile territory. Every one of them holds equity in the company. “They’re shareholders, so they’re incentivized to execute at a high level and support each other,” Brooks shares. “When customers call, they talk directly to that local person who will solve their problem, not a call center or an email queue.” This decentralized model has built a culture of accountability and responsiveness, and it’s a major reason for the company’s success. “We like to be the offensive lineman of the supply chain,” Brooks says with a laugh. “The guy who quietly blocks and protects for 10 or 15 years, never making headlines but always getting the job done.”
Smart Growth
WoW continues to invest in technology that streamlines operations and enhances customer transparency. The company has also begun using AI agents internally for tasks like contract compliance, visibility to areas of spending that often go unnoticed “Whenever I give a speech, I tell people I’m not going to talk about AI, but someone recently reminded me that you can’t spell trailer without AI, says Brooks, who takes a practical approach to AI implementation. “We centralize what was once scattered across different sites, giving customers visibility into costs they never had before.
With a customer base of more than 7,000 organizations, WoW serves everyone from early stage companies to global giants. Some of those big players have been with the company for over two decades. “Many of our Fortune 100 clients are recognized as world-class operators,” Brooks says. “People study how they run their plants and supply chains. The fact that they view our solution as optimal, that’s a pretty strong Good Housekeeping seal of approval.” It’s also a validation that underscores Brooks’s steady leadership and belief in keeping business practical, flexible, and human. “Listen first. Pray for wisdom. Lead with courage. Own the outcome.”
To learn more about Warehouse on Wheels and Jonathan N. Brooks, connect with him on LinkedIn.
