ALLIED VICTORY
For Janice O’Connor, this year is somewhat big. Not only did her company turn 25 in April but she too has reached a milestone – her 50th birthday.
Seated at the Dohertys Road office in Laverton North, west of Melbourne, it’s a busy Thursday afternoon with trucks whizzing past and containers being unloaded.
A leader with a warm and welcoming personality, it’s easy to see why O’Connor is widely liked.
The mother of three joined her father’s business upon establishment in 1994. Bill O’Connor was working for a Swedish freight forwarder before starting Allied Seafreight Logistics. He had migrated with the family 14 years earlier from Ireland, where he had spent some 20 years in the transport industry.
When the Swedes decided to downsize all overseas operations and concentrate on the home market, Bill set up his own business with their assistance, O’Connor explains.
“They gave us a year to transition the business from being an international business back to family operation,” O’Connor says.
“The company wanted to be a one-stop shop – that was the buzz word at the time.
“He worked for them and had set up
